Naruto: Remnants of the Past
by Haine Gray
Summary: After the events at the Valley of the End, Naruto decides to cut all his ties to Konoha, and leave everything he suffered through behind. With the greatest of the nine Bijū at his side, he leaves the elemental nations, in hopes of living a life free of his past burdens, and without people trying to control him...little did he know that his past life would come back to haunt him.
1. Cutting ties

**Authors note:** Yup, I'm back, for those of you who know me from my other two stories. As for those, I'm sorry to say that I won't be continuing them any time soon, as I've lost most of my inspiration for both. I am considering putting them up for adoption, but I still have to think about that, so don't take my word for it.

That aside, I've recently started watching RWBY, and I've really enjoyed it so far. I've also been working on a Naruto fanfic, so I decided to combine both and write a crossover. Regarding the pairing, I know people will want a harem, which I understand to a certain degree seeing as how RWBY is pretty much full of female characters, but personally, I think Blake would be a good match for Naruto. Also, Naruto will be a lot smarter in this fic, and won't really hold Konoha in high regard, so it is kinda' a smart and grey/dark Naruto.

Well, I won't drag this AN out any longer, enjoy the first chapter of Naruto: Remnants of the Past.

**Edit 30.10.14: **Edited the first chapter of the story, reason being that I found it a little rushed and vague for a setup chapter after reading through it a few times. Also added lines when the scene changes, which was a suggestion of reviewer SilverFoxSage. Thanks for that.

**Bold - Demon/Spirit speaking**

_Italic - Thoughts_

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><p><strong>Chapter one: Cutting ties<strong>

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><p>Tsunade Senju and Kakashi Hatake were currently standing in one of the many, bleak rooms of the Konoha hospital.<p>

Both of the two shinobi were staring at the bed that was located in the corner of the room, or rather the blonde boy that was lying in it, the sunlight that was streaming in from the window lighting up his face, that was set in a calm, yet pained expression, as if he was having a nightmare, which was very likely the case considering the circumstances that brought this all about.

It had been a few hours after the first and second medic teams had arrived with the members of the emergency-response team tasked with Sasuke Uchihas retrieval. While some of them had suffered minor to moderate injuries, others, namely Chōji Akimichi and Neji Hyūga were in critical condition upon arrival, and required urgent medical attention.

Tsunade, along with Shizune and a team of medical-nin had worked tirelessly to ensure the survival of the two teens that were in critical condition. The medical encyclopaedia of the Nara clan was a huge help in that regard, especially in the case of Chōji Akimichi, as it described the effects and ingredients of the Akimichi clan's Three Coloured Pills that the boy had taken. Without the tome, Tsunade doubted that she would've been able to neutralize the poisons in the young Akimichi's body, even with her medical prowess.

Soon after Tsunade had brought the boy back from death's door, Shizune appeared with the message that Neji Hyūga's had also stabilized, thanks to her and the medic team, who had performed the Chikatsu Saisei no Jutsu **(1)** to regenerate the part of his chest that was pierced by Kidōmaru's arrow. The technique had a simple principle behind it, but was very difficult to perform. Basically, with the use of a medium, such as strands of hair, cells were converted to regenerate a missing section of the body. The success rate of the treatment, however, was considerably low, as it required immense concentration, which had to be maintained over long periods of time.

Shikamaru Nara, Kiba Inuzuka and his companion Akamaru had all been patched up as well, the former only suffering from a broken finger, while the other two had broken bones and damaged muscles that primarily required time to mend and heal.

The last person of the team, Naruto Uzumaki, was a completely different story. Kakashi had found the boy passed out at the Valley of the End, and returned with him shortly after the medic teams had arrived with the other members. As expected, he didn't suffer from any grievous injuries, as all of them were healed by the Kyūbi's potent chakra. The young blonde was still completely exhausted thought, and Tsunade didn't put emotional trauma beyond him, considering what he had been through.

"How's his condition?" The question asked by the cyclopean Jōnin next to her pulled Tsunade out of her thoughts.

After a few moments of silence, the Hokage replied, "Stable. All of his wounds were healed by the Kyūbi, but he still needs to take it easy and rest for now."

The man next to her nodded meekly, his normally stoic face, or what was visible of it, a mask of guilt. He was no doubt beating himself up for what had transpired at the Valley of the End. Tsunade of course didn't blame him for what happened, but that was simply how the silver-haired man saw it, as a failure on his part as their sensei.

"I...I should've seen this coming."

The blonde woman sighed in frustration, "But you didn't, and there's nothing we can do about that now...I'm just glad Naruto came back alive."

Kakashi wanted to deny it, but thought better of arguing with her. With a small nod, he turned on his heel and left the room, heading for the place that he always visited when he felt like this.

The room fell into a calm silence, only broken by Naruto's light snores, which caused a smile to appear on Tsunade's face as she regarded the boy she considered a grandson. It seemed that whatever bad dream he was having was over, and with a few steps she closed the distance between the two, gently laying a hand on his forehead before leaving the room as well, allowing the boy a well deserved rest.

**Mindscape**

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><p>Naruto awoke to the sound of dripping, slowly blinking and propping his body up as he tried to find the source of the annoying sound.<p>

It didn't take long, as he spotted one of the many pipes that ran the length of the ceiling, and the water that was dripping down from it. That was when he realized that he had entered _that _place again. To Naruto, it just looked like a sewer system, akin to the one that he used to hide in when the villagers were out for his blood. But this one was different, in that it had a massive room that held a gate spanning from one wall to the other, beyond which was an inky darkness.

With a defeated sigh, Naruto let himself fall back into the shallow water that covered the floor of the room, the events of the past day replaying themselved in his mind. The blonde brought a hand up to feel the spot that had a Chidori rammed through it, and sure enough, the wound was completely healed, though he could still feel a phantom pain lingering over that spot.

He remembered the glare those cold, unfeeling eyes gave him as his _friend _rammed his hand through his chest, which most likely would've killed him if he hadn't diverted the attack.

Anger bubbled past the grief and sorrow Naruto felt for losing the person he considered a brother, and with a shout of frustration, he clenched his fist and brought it down to the floor, causing the water it hit to splash over him.

As a Jinchūriki, Naruto's life had been a living hell, from the relatively harmless glares he received from the villagers, to the harsh beatings that he would be dealt frequently. The few proverbial rays of light in that hell had been a few people, one of them being Sasuke.

While the "last" Uchiha considered Naruto anything but a friend, he had acknowledged his strength, and the bond that the two had, forged by the pain and loneliness both of them had experienced in their lives.

As such, it was beyond painful and infuriating to see Sasuke cut off that bond so easily and without a second thought, while he did all he could to preserve it, going so far as to risk his life to bring him back from the path he had began to tread on; a path that would slowly envelop him in darkness.

His hands clenched into fists, and he could even feel his nails digging into his flesh and drawing blood. He didn't notice the small streams of orange chakra slithering out of cage in the large room, converging at and being absorbed into his body, causing his pupils to turn crimson and his nails to sharpen into claws slightly.

He was snapped out of his anger as he heard a loud and markedly derisive snort from his right, and turning his head, he quickly found the source of it. Staring down at him with pure contempt and hatred was the Kyūbi no Yōko; the nine-tailed demon fox.

**"Pathetic human. Drawing on my power again so soon?"** he asked with barely concealed hatred.

Naruto didn't reply to the question, but took a few calming breaths to cool himself down. This seemed to work, as the crimson was drained from his eyes, and his nails began to retract. With a sigh, the blonde turned his head back to its previous position, not really in the mood to argue with his tenant.

The demon fox noticed this, and also the empty look in his eyes as he stared up into the ceiling of the room.

With an annoyed huff, he rested his head on his forepaws, _**'Here it comes...'**_

Over the centuries, he had had many containers who suffered from the same experience as Naruto did. While that wasn't exactly the case for all of them, it was for the majority.

In his knowledge, they wouldn't pass up a chance to complain and rant about their misfortune whenever they were pulled into the seal. That was one of the reasons the fox had such a burning hatred for humans; in his eyes, they were fragile and selfish creatures. Not once had they considered the fact that he himself was suffering as well, seeing as he was the one that was imprisoned after all. No sentient being would be happy to be locked away behind a set of bars, never to see the light of day again and get passed from Jinchūriki to Jinchūriki, like some kind of toy, or a weapon, which was what the hidden villages considered him.

Moments passed, and the demon fox heard nothing. Deciding to find out what was taking so long, he cracked an eye open, only to find Naruto's gaze still fixed on the ceiling.

**"...you're not going to start ranting and raving about the unfairness of all this?"**

The blonde turned his head to the great Bijū. "No," he replied flatly.

The fox hid the surprise that began to show on his face, **"What? Why?"**

Naruto sighed, before letting his gaze drift to the floor as he sat up, "Because it won't change anything. It won't give me back the people that were dear to me, nor will it grant me a better life."

Kyūbi stared at Naruto for a good minute, as if evaluating him and his response, before he closed his eyes again, a small grin on his face that revealed some of his razor sharp teeth, **"Heh, you're alright, brat."**

Naruto looked up at the Bijū, his surprise hidden by an emotionless mask. From the few encounters he had with the fox, he knew that he hated humans more than anything else in the world, and would like nothing more than to rip each and everyone of them apart. So, it came as quite a surprise to have the demon fox approve of him so easily. Deciding not to ponder on that for too long, Naruto thought about what he was going to do now.

The blonde was sick of it, sick of the pain that the village and its inhabitants had brought him. And now even the person he considered a brother had abandoned him, nevermind the fact that he attempted to kill him for the sole purpose of gaining power.

**"I take it you'll run away from the village then?"** Kyūbi asked, his eyes open again and regarding him with...curiosity? Naruto couldn't exactly place his finger on it, as it was gone as fast as it came.

"Wait," he said with a slight frown on his face, "How do you know that?"

**"I read your mind,"** the fox stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"How?"

This earned him an irritated huff from the Bijū,** "Not very difficult, considering we are **_**in **_**your mind."**

The blonde slowly nodded, making a mental note to keep certain thoughts to himself while he was in the sewer that was his mind. Dismissing those thoughts, Naruto noticed the pair of large, crimson eyes staring at him intently.

"I'm done with Konoha. It's not like they would care if I was gone, so that's exactly what I'll do; I'll get as far away from them and the elemental nations as I can, so I won't ever have to deal with them again."

**"West."**

"What?"

**"You should travel to the West, between the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth. There's a place beyond the vast lands that connect to the two; a place where no one will find you."**

Naruto frowned in thought; from what he could recall, the Village hidden in the Stones was located between the two, but he didn't know what was further West than that.

But that was exactly what he wanted; a place where they would never find him, and a place that wasn't even depicted on the maps of the elemental countries seemed like his best bet. The blonde was snapped out of his thoughts as Kyūbi spoke again.

**"And before you leave, create a reinforced shadow clone to stay behind. If the village finds out that you're gone, they'll immediately send retrieval teams after you."**

The Fox snorted loudly, sending a gust of air at Naruto, **"After all, they wouldn't take too kindly to losing such a great part of their 'military strength'."**

Naruto nodded, and turned around to leave, but not before turning his head to look at the mighty Bijū again, "Hey, Kyūbi...I didn't ever thank you for all the times you helped me, did I? And back at the Valley of the End..."

His response was a huff from the great demon fox, **"Don't misunderstand me, brat. If you die, I die as well."**

Naruto stared at the fox for a moment, before a small smile appeared on his lips, and his body vanished from the mindscape.

**Naruto's apartment**

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><p>Naruto had awoken in a hospital room after he had left his mindscape, and was relieved to notice that night had fallen over Konoha. Heeding the advice of his tenant, he quickly created a shadow clone, giving it an ample amount of chakra for it to last a good few days, which in turn would grant him a nice headstart.<p>

Currently, the young blonde was in the small apartment his late Jiji had arranged for him. With the advice of the demon fox, Naruto began to pack a bag with things that he would need during his escape. Kyūbi had reprimanded him for trying to sneak a cup of instant ramen into the bag, with the reasoning that it had close to no nutrients, nevermind the fact that microwaves were rather...scarce in the wilderness.

What he had right now were a few bottles of water, some rations and energy bars, soldier and plasma pills, and a compass.

Other than that, he also packed his standard ninja equipment, such as kunai, ninja wire, a first-aid kit and some scrolls in which he had sealed some more equipment, so that he didn't have to carry another dozen kunai on his person, which would only result in slowing him down, and Naruto couldn't afford to waste time.

He had thought about sealing everything into scrolls at first, but once again, the voice of reason that belonged to his tenants resounded in his mind, telling him that unsealing, consuming, and resealing things that he would need as frequently as food and water was pointless.

Lastly, he had taken all the money he had saved up from the missions with team seven, which was hidden underneath a loose floorboard.

He threw the bag with its contents over his back, before walking over to the window. He was about to open it and leave, before a small glint caught his eye. The blonde turned to the night stand that was next to his bed, and looked at the framed picture that was placed on it, the moonlight that was flooding into his room reflecting off the glass.

He turned around and crossed the room with a few steps, standing infront of the nightstand now. The blonde grabbed the framed picture and closely regarded the four people on it.

It showed Kakashi, whose hair was gravity-defying as always, with his signature eye-smile on his face as he ruffled Naruto's and Sasuke's hair. Said boys were looking away with annoyed looks on their faces while their teammate, and Sasuke's number one fangirl was seemingly squealing in joy between the two.

Naruto remembered looking at the picture whenever he felt down, mostly due to the treatment he would receive by the villagers, and it would always manage to cheer him up.

Right now, however, there was no grin, or even a slight smile on his face as he stared at the picture. His eyes were empty, and his face was an emotionless mask as he slid the photo out of its frame and brought it up before ripping the portion that showed himself off from the rest of the photo.

He slid the picture of himself back into the frame and placed it in his bag, and let the other portion carelessly fall to the wooden floor.

That was when he heard Kyūbi's voice in his mind, **"Kit."**

Naruto's eyes widened a slight bit, before looking over to the window in his room, "Right, sorry."

With that, he quickly exited his apartment via the window, making his way to the gates as he melted into the shadows of the allies.

A couple minutes later, Naruto arrived at one of the gates leading out of the village, and silently cursed under his breath when he noticed the two gate guards, Izumo and Kotetsu standing to either side of said gate. Still, he considered himself lucky; with all that happened recently, he would've expected security to be considerably tighter.

"Henge," he whispered, after which he transformed into a small fox with grey and orange fur.

**"How very subtle," **Kyūbi remarked sarcastically.

_'I couldn't think of anything else, so can it. Can you do anything to mask my chakra?'_

**"I can, but not for long because of this damn seal suppressing my influence."**

_'It'll have to do,' _Naruto thought as he, in fox form, slowly padded his way up to Kotetsu, who was talking to his partner while they kept watch, and quietly slipped between his legs. Sticking to the outer wall that encircled the whole village, Naruto began to quickly get out of their sight.

He faintly heard Izumo ask his partner if he had seen anything just then, to which the other replied that it was probably just a cat. Naruto paid no mind to that as he darted into the treeline, entering the vast forest that Konoha was famous for. He released the Henge, and took to the trees, moving as fast as he could, without sparing the village another glance.

**Two days later**

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><p>The moonlight glittered faintly in the stream nearby which Naruto had set up his camp for the night. For the past two days, the young blonde had been on the move non-stop, without taking a break or even slowing down. Eventually though, his tenant had forced him to stop and get some rest, as tree-hopping for so long would cause him to collapse from exhaustion soon, even with his enormous chakra reserves that the blonde prided himself in.<p>

Naruto was against the idea of taking a break initially, but had to concede as he did slowly feel exhaustion catch up to him, and he didn't want to pass out now, as that would leave him an easy target for whatever was out for his blood. Which were a lot of things.

So, here he was, grilling a fish he had caught over a small campfire, with several clones keeping watch for him at different positions around the camp.

**"Naruto, come into the mindscape," **Kyūbi's voice rang through his head as he stoked the fire. He tossed the small branch in his hand into the fire, and took a meditative position, feeling a pull in the back of his mind.

**Mindscape**

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><p>"What's up?" Naruto asked as he appeared before the gates behind which the giant fox was locked, currently resting his head on his forepaws.<p>

**"We will be starting your training beginning tomorrow,"** the fox said, eyeing Naruto with his large, crimson orbs.

"Training?"

Kyūbi growled slightly,** "Yes, training. Do you expect me to have a Jinchūriki as weak as you currently are? Your pitiful excuse of a ninja academy has taught you what toddlers can do, and you haven't even started with advanced trainings, such as nature transformation."**

Naruto thought about it for a moment; it was true, besides the Rasengan, the Shadow Clones and some other lower ranked techniques, he didn't have much else in his arsenal. And if the few missions he had taken in his time in Konoha were anything to go by, life outside of the village's safety was anything but rainbows and fluffy kittens, so it would only make sense to prepare for the worst.

"Alright, but how will you teach me? You can't leave the seal after all."

Kyūbi gave him an irritated look, **"We can train in your mindscape, but you'll have to do the physical training on your own outside of the seal, I can only tell you what to do and point out any mistakes you make."**

Naruto nodded his head, it was a solid plan. And if nothing else, he would receive training from a Bijū, the Kyūbi nonetheless, which caused a smirk to appear on his face. "Didn't think I'd live to see the day where the 'great Kyūbi' would decide to train a 'pathetic human'," he mocked.

The Bijū growled in response, which was gone as he gave him a malicious grin worthy of a demon fox, **"It does get awfully boring here, and I could use some...**_**fun."**_

The smirk was wiped off his face, and something told Naruto that what Kyūbi considered fun would cause him excruciating amounts of pain, but he didn't get to voice his worries as the demon fox spoke again.

**"Now begone. You have to rest, and I want to sleep."**

Naruto simply nodded as the fox closed his eyes and started snoring, though the blonde didn't know if he was really sleeping or just faking it. Nonetheless, his body vanished from the mindscape.

**Real world**

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><p>As Naruto appeared back in the real world, he noticed that the fire was slowly dying out, and he finally felt the exhaustion of running for nearly two days after recovering from a mortal wound and escaping a village catch up with him.<p>

He laid down on the bedding he had made from leaves and moss, sighing as the warmth of the glowing embers washed over him, and relaxed his sore body. He felt himself slowly drift into a well deserved sleep, but he couldn't help but smile. He had taken the first step to starting a new life, a life free of the remnants of his past.

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><p><strong>(1):<strong> Regenerative Healing technique

Well, that was the first chapter, hopefully of many to come.

As always, reviews are very much appreciated as they help the author iron out any flaws in the story or writing style.

Until the next chapter. See ya'.


	2. Welcome to Remnant

**Author's note: **I apologize for the rather long wait for those of you who liked and are following this story. I was quite busy the past few days, and I also scrapped and rewrote this chapter a few times, since introducing Naruto to Remnant was a bit tricky with the way I started this story.

Aside from that, I'll try to make the next chapter longer, around ten-thousand words or so.

In the meantime, enjoy the second chapter of Naruto: Remnants of the Past.

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><p><strong>Chapter two: Welcome to Remnant<strong>

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><p>Naruto stood leaning against the railing of the ship he had boarded a week ago, breathing in the fresh ocean air as he stared out into the vast, blue nothingness that was the ocean before him. He brought a hand up to adjust his face-mask, which still required some getting used to, much like the rest of his new outfit that he had gotten as per Kyūbi's...suggestion, which was more of a death threat than anything should he not get rid of his old jumpsuit.<p>

Still, the blonde was glad he got the new outfit, as it was much better than the obnoxious orange jumpsuit he used to wear, both in looks and functionality.

It consisted of a pair of black, slightly baggy pants that were tied off at the shins, and a tight, black and long-sleeved shirt. Over the shirt he wore a form-fitting grey jacket with a large, dark-orange swirl on the back. On top of that, he had donned a dark, hooded cloak that hid his face and most of his body from sight.

The outfit was completed by a pair of combat boots, black gloves that lacked index and middle fingers, and a face-mask that covered the lower half of his face.

All in all, the outfit was more versatile, stealthy and durable than his old jumpsuit; just what a shinobi needed.

Naruto turned around, and let his gaze sweep across the deck of the ship. After confirming that no one was there, he spoke, the slightly high-pitched tone his voice once held replaced by a considerably deeper one.

"Kurama, you awake?"

His response came in form of an irritated, low growl, followed by a deep, rumbling voice, **"I didn't tell you my name so you could throw it around so casually, brat."**

While many would've soiled their clothing at the dangerous undertone of his voice, Naruto just shrugged it off, as if it was a daily occurrence between the two, "Relax, _sensei_, there's no one here."

Annoyed grumbling could be heard in his mind before the Bijū spoke, **"Whatever. What do you want?"**

The smile on Naruto's face disappeared, and his now angular face took on a more thoughtful and serious expression, "This place you told me about, Remnant...what's it like there?"

Kurama had told Naruto about Remnant during the second year of his defection, when Naruto had asked him about a place where he could start a new life. Sure, travelling had been a lot of fun for the blonde, and he had learned a lot during that time, but he eventually did have to find a place to settle down; a new home. So the fox suggested Remnant as a possible destination and told him what little he knew about it, which was what his 'father' had told him when he was young.

That was another topic that they had argued about many times; while the two had gotten much closer during the past three years, and now shared a student-master relationship, the fox was still reluctant to talk to him about certain things, only giving him small bits of information on the subject before ultimately dismissing him. One of these things was the demon's father, which he had only mentioned a handful of times throughout their travelling.

Naruto's reminiscing was cut short as the fox replied, **"I've already told you everything I know about it. According to the old man, it was a completely different world, separated from the elemental nations, and technologically, far more advanced than them. He told us that he was only there once or twice during his life, so even his knowledge about it must've been far from extensive."**

The blonde nodded as he went over the small bits of information again. It wasn't exactly the most informative description, and 'far more advanced' was rather vague as well, but that was hardly Kurama's fault. He decided to put those thoughts on the back-burner for now, and addressed another matter that had been on his mind for quite some time now.

"Kurama, why won't you tell me about him?"

The demon fox growled and replied in a dangerous tone, **"Because doing so would be an insult to him."**

Naruto sighed, half in frustration and half in defeat, but to his mild surprise, the fox continued, **"I will tell you this much, however. That man was a god among humans, greater than any of you ever were or will be, and he was the one human that held the respect of my brethren and I, to this day." **There was a pause before the ancient demon spoke again, **"Now, stop pestering me. If I'm not mistaken, we are to arrive soon."**

The blond wasn't exactly satisfied with his answer, but nodded nonetheless and cut off the mental connection between him and his tenant. He knew better than to push the Bijū.

With another sigh, he turned around, and true to Kurama's words, Naruto was able to see a mass of land far off in the distance. The blonde figured that he might as well use the time left to their arrival to meditate, and so he sat down in a meditative position and began to relax and slow his breathing.

**Two hours later**

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><p>Naruto's meditation was interrupted by a voice behind him. He exhaled slowly and stood up. Turning around, the blonde came face-to-face with the captain of the ship. A burly man in his mid-forties, with a scraggy beard and breath that smelled heavily of alcohol.<p>

"Well, 'ere we are. Sorry kid, but the nearest port is fifteen miles from 'ere, and the money you gave us was only enough to get you this far. So, unless you want to travel back, I'm gonna' have to ask you to swim the rest of the way."

A year ago, the language the man was speaking would've made no sense to Naruto, but thanks to Kurama, he was now fluent in English. The reason for him teaching his container the language was due to the fact that no-one spoke Japanese in this part of the world. Naruto found that out the hard way, about a year after his defection. He had just crossed the barren wasteland that was beyond the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth, and as he arrived in a small village a few hours later, he was surprised to find out that no-one understood him, and vice-versa.

Luckily, Kurama, being the millennia-old demon that he was, was proficient in more than a handful of tongues and languages, English being one of those. So he decided it would make sense to teach it to the blonde. The learning curve was quite steep, what with all the differences in the two languages, but after a year and a half of studying, Naruto could now read, write and fluently speak English.

Back in the present, the blonde turned around and gazed at the shore of wherever it was they had arrived at, and noticed the lack of a port or harbor. He took a few moments to roughly estimate the distance between the ship and the shore, and with a small grin that was hidden behind his face-mask, the blonde turned to the captain and replied, "That's alright, I'll just walk."

The captain gave him a weird look, but before the man could voice a reply, which probably would've been something along the lines of, 'Are you mad?', Naruto jumped off the ship. The captain, along with the crew members that saw this, ran to the railing and peered down the side of the ship, amazed to see the blonde actually standing on the surface of the water.

With a last adjustment of his hood, he began walking in the direction of the shore in an almost leisurely pace, as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

Well, nothing _was _out of the ordinary, for Naruto at least.

Without a care in the world, and ignoring the several pairs of eyes glued to his back, he continued on his way to the shore, beyond which began a dense forest.

**Several hours later**

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><p>After Naruto had reached the shore, he noticed a lack of anything that would suggest human presence, so he decided to make his way through the forest; if he had any luck, he would stumble upon a city or a village beyond it.<p>

Currently, the blonde had just happened upon a clearing in the vast forest, the annoyance and irritation of a several hour long tree-hopping session beginning to show on his face in form of a slight scowl. Deciding to take a small break from tree-hopping, Naruto jumped down into the clearing.

As he approached the middle of said clearing, his eyes narrowed and his body tensed. As anticipated, he heard Kurama's voice in his mind, **"Naruto."**

_'I know.'_

The chirping of birds and singing of cicadas that was heard a moment ago came to an abrupt halt, which only served to prove Naruto's and Kurama's rising suspicions right; something was wrong.

Suddenly, black blurs shot out of the treeline and into the clearing from all directions, prompting Naruto to pump a large amount of chakra into his legs and jump up into the air and above the clearing. Not a second later, the black blurs converged in the middle of the clearing, where the blonde had been standing before.

From above, Naruto could clearly see what had tried to assault him, and what he saw caused a frown to appear on his, and unbeknownst to the blonde, on Kurama's face.

Looking up at him with burning red eyes were half a dozen...creatures with pitch black fur, and protrusions along their arms and spines that looked like bones. They also seemed to be wearing masks made out of the same bone-like substance, but with red lines running along them and forming patterns on the mask.

_'Kurama, what in Kami's name are those things?'_

**"...I don't know. I'm seeing these...things, for the first time as well."**

Now that was weird. Being a Bijū, Kurama had been around for a long, long time. Upwards of a few millennia from what Naruto knew; as such, he had knowledge over a myriad of things, both of demonic and of human origin, so for him to now know about something was...unsettling, to say the least.

He didn't have time to ponder on it though, as two more of the creatures shot out from the trees below him, attempting to intercept him in the air.

Keyword: attempted.

Naruto smirked as he flipped mid-air and blasted himself towards the earth with a burst of chakra, a Rasengan already forming in either hand, completely without the help of shadow clones. He rammed the two spheres into the ascending creatures, which resulted in all three of them crashing down into the clearing.

The rest of the strange beings watched as the three impacted with the ground, causing a small explosion that kicked up a cloud of dust and debris. As said cloud began to settle, the creatures could see the small crater that the blonde's attack had formed. The two others that were stupid enough to attack him were now lifeless bodies with a large, gaping hole in both of their corpses.

Meanwhile, the blonde was wiping off some of the dust from the shoulder of his jacket, before turning to the remaining creatures that were still processing what had just happened.

Raising a hand, he made a beckoning motion that seemed to snap the things out of their daze as they began rushing at him.

Naruto slipped into his combat stance as he engaged them in taijutsu, dodging and weaving through their attacks, which wasn't a very difficult feat seeing as they were uncoordinated and almost clumsy. That didn't mean he would get careless though; Kurama had drilled into his head during their training that he should never underestimate an opponent and never let his guard down during a fight, no matter how easy it seemed.

And if the sharp claws and fangs were anything to go by, a swipe or bite from one of these things would be anything but a pleasant experience.

He stepped to the side as one of the creatures lunged at him, and brought his hand, which was gripping a kunai, down on his back. He raised an eyebrow in surprise as the kunai bounced off the creature's skin, without leaving as much as a scratch.

The being used this chance to lash at him with its claws, only for Naruto to jump back.

He didn't waste any time as he threw the kunai, but this time, he had channeled wind chakra into the blade, increasing the sharpness and range of it considerably. So much so that one could see the air being cut as it sailed towards its target, leaving a thin white streak in its wake. This time however it had no problem piercing through the creature's skin and right through its throat.

Instinctively, the blonde ducked underneath a swipe aimed for his head, before channeling chakra into his fist, turning around and ramming it into the chest of the creature that tried to blind-side him, sending it flying into a tree which splintered and broke from the force of the punch. Naruto didn't pay any attention to that as more of the beings came at him from all sides.

He caught a clawed hand mid-swipe and swung the owner of the limb around, slamming the creature into the others and causing them all to fall to the ground. Before they could even recover, a clone appeared above each one of them, and with a sickening crunch, snapped their necks.

After dispelling the clones, Naruto scanned the clearing, and noticed that the creatures were all taken care of.

The blonde took a few steps to one of the bodies that was lying in the crater, intent on closer examining just what it was that had tried to kill him. He tried to turn the grotesque body of the being around, but before his hand could even make contact with the it, it began to...evaporate? With a slight hissing sound, the corpses slowly began to evaporate into a black smoke that rose into the sky before disappearing completely.

Shortly after, all the bodies were gone, and Naruto stared blankly at where one of them had been a minute ago, "Riiiight...what the hell was that?"

"Creatures of Grimm."

Naruto turned around to see a figure standing at the treeline, partially hidden by the shadows.

"Come again?"

A chuckle escaped the person's lips as he slowly walked into the clearing, revealing himself to be a middle-aged man with light-grey hair and brown eyes, underneath which a pair of shaded spectacles rested. He wore a dark suit over a vest with a green shirt underneath, and a simple pair of dark-green pants. The man also had a green scarf wrapped around his neck, with a small, cross-shaped emblem pinned to the front.

"Creatures of Grimm. Tell me, you aren't from here, isn't that correct?"

"No, I've...traveled here from a far away place." It wasn't a lie, but Naruto didn't exactly want to tell a stranger he had traveled here from the Elemental nations after defecting from his village.

The man seemed to realize that the blonde wouldn't give him any details on that, and continued, "That was quite a show you put on there, you would make a fine huntsman with skills like that. May I know your name?"

"Naruto. Naruto Uzumaki. And who are you?"

The man gave him a small smile, "You can call me professor Ozpin."

The blonde didn't comment on the lack of a first name, and recalled what he had said before, "You said something about me making a fine huntsman. What do you mean?"

"You...really do not have any knowledge about where you are? About Remnant?"

Naruto shook his head, "No, my mentor told me a little about it, but other than the fact that the people here have very advanced technology, I know nothing."

Seeing as this man obviously knew something about this world, Naruto decided to use this situation to his advantage. "Actually, I was looking for someone that could...tell me about this place." Naruto had a _lot _of questions after fighting those creatures, and he had a feeling he would have a lot more by the end of the day.

"I'd be happy to answer all your questions, though we would do well to discuss these matters where we won't get...interrupted." The professor let his gaze drift across the clearing, and Naruto knew what he meant.

"Alright. So, how do we get out of this forest?"

The man smirked slightly, before pulling out a small device which he then proceeded to pull apart, revealing a screen between the two halves. A few taps on said screen later, he began to speak, seemingly to no-one.

"Jaden, if you will."

Naruto simply raised an eyebrow, the second one following shortly after as a huge, metal...thing descended from the sky, and landed in the clearing. The blonde stared in wonder at the construct for a few moments; was this the advanced technology Kurama had told him about?

The professor turned to him with a small smirk on his face as a section on the side of the aircraft retracted and shifted to the side, revealing a hollow space which probably served to transport things or people in this case.

"Shall we?" He said as he entered the aircraft, looking at Naruto with mild amusement.

_**'This person obviously knows a lot about this place, you should go with him.'**_

_'Yeah, I figured as much,' _Naruto replied internally, before nodding and entering the aircraft, which then began to lift up into the air. It was a weird feeling for Naruto, which Ozpin seemed to notice as he gestured to one of the seats behind the blonde.

**Several hours later**

* * *

><p>"...and that is why we continue to educate huntsmen and huntresses to this day...hopefully for generations to come."<p>

"I...see." Naruto stared at the man before him with a blank face. They had arrived at Beacon academy a few hours ago, which Ozpin was the headmaster of.

Naruto had to admit he was surprised and slightly impressed by the aircraft that picked them up, but that was nothing compared to the the academy itself. It was a truly impressive sight; there was a long avenue, that was flanked by trees and light-poles, which had flags draped around them. The avenue lead to what looked like the main academy buildings, which could be accessed by the large and equally impressive main doorway.

There was also a stone statue on the campus of the academy, displaying two people; a man and a woman, dressed in robes with hoods draped over their heads. The former of the two held a sword in one hand, raising it above his head in a triumphant gesture. The latter, who also seemed to be a little younger than the man, was looking off into the distance. Naruto didn't recognize either of them, which wasn't surprising. He did however recognize the two things below them; the same creatures that had attacked him in the clearing. Beowolves, as Ozpin had told him.

They continued on to the main tower of the academy, where Ozpin's office was located. It was a weird office, to say the least. The room was round, with pillars spaced evenly around to support the roof. Between the pillars were glass windows with a light green tint. The room was also filled with a large amount of gears, some bigger than others, but all turning in a slow speed. The larger one's were suspended from the roof by metal rods, and there were also some on the side of the room, which were locked inside a half-moon shaped case with a glass pane covering it.

Naruto didn't know if the gears actually served a purpose, or were just there for decoration. He didn't have much time to think about it though as the man had ushered him to his desk.

Once both of them were seated, and Naruto had removed his mask and hood, the man told him that he would answer any question the blonde had, as long as it was in his capacity to do so. Naruto didn't have any questions, per se, as he knew absolutely nothing about this place, so he just requested a brief summary of anything that the professor deemed important, which was a lot as Naruto soon found out.

But even though it was a lot of information to take in and process, it was only the most important things and subjects that the professor told him about; important events in the world's history, which also included the technology and its evolution. 'Dust', Hunters and the creatures of Grimm were also among the more prominent subjects they had discussed.

All in all, Naruto and Kurama had quickly found out that, while there were certain similarities, Remnant was absolutely nothing like the elemental nations. Combat in this world was more weapon-oriented, and from what the professor had told him, the weapons here were nothing like those in the elemental nations. They often had many forms, and could freely shift between them. These forms enabled them to operate in both close combat and in long-range if the need would arise. These weapons were mostly exclusive to hunters though, as the police had standard issue weaponry.

The weapons could also be augmented with 'Dust', which was a source of energy in this world, and apparently instrumental in fighting the Grimm, an age old menace that sought nothing more than to destroy mankind.

Outside of combat, Dust had many other uses; it could be used as a source of energy, forged into weapons and weaved into clothing, and it could even be fused into one's body, though that was a more archaic tradition, as Ozpin had told him.

However, Naruto wasn't the only one who had questions, which was understandable as the professor probably didn't know many people outside of Remnant, given his surprise at even seeing a single person from outside of this world. Naruto of course didn't go into too much detail about most things, such as Konoha or the fact that he had a demon fox sealed inside of him.

Currently, he had just finished telling him a little about the Elemental nations, and about his three year long travel.

"I see. If you don't mind me asking a little more, what, or rather how did you do...whatever it was that you did back in the clearing?

It didn't take a genius to realize that he was talking about the Rasengan and the shadow clones he had used during his fight with the Grimm.

"It's...complicated. What do you know about chakra?"

Ozpin's face took on a slightly confused expression. "Chakra?"

_**'...Dear Kami in heaven...', **_both Naruto and his tenant chorused in the former's mind.

Ozpin chuckled as Naruto stared at him with deadpan expression, "Judging by the look on your face, 'chakra' must be a common term where you are from."

Naruto regained his composure and nodded, "To put it simply, chakra is energy. Most living beings produce it to an extent and require it to live; animals, humans, even nature itself produces a type of chakra. It's a combination of ones physical energy, which is drawn from every cell in the body, and spiritual energy, which is drawn from the mind. Together, these two energies create chakra."

"Interesting. And I'd assume you need chakra for what you had performed in the clearing earlier?"

"Yes. Once the chakra is molded, it can be channeled into the chakra pathway system, to any of the Tenketsu, which are pressure points through which the chakra can be expelled. Think of it like this: the chakra pathway systems is to chakra as the circulatory system is to blood."

Ozpin nodded and waited for Naruto to continue.

"Simply expelling chakra through those nodes is not enough though, as it has to be manipulated beforehand, the most common method to do so being through hand seals. Once that is complete, it can be expelled through the Tenketsu to use techniques like the one's you saw me perform. But that is just a very basic example. There are other things that factor into that, such as different chakra natures, genetics, simple talent, and chakra control, which can be honed by years of training, studying and meditation."

Inside the mindscape, Kurama couldn't help but nod in approval, a smirk appearing on his face as be observed and listened from within Naruto's mind; the boy had come a long way during the last three years. He had grown knowledgeable, strong and mature. He wouldn't rush headfirst into a battle, and his cheerful, loudmouthed behavior was replaced by a more calmer and reserved one, but that was more due to what the boy had been through in his childhood, and the treatment he had received as a Jinchūriki. One thing that had always stuck to the blonde though was his talent for playing pranks. He had pulled a few on the mighty Bijū himself, but Kurama just chalked that up to the phrase 'old habits die hard'...even though he knew that it was partially due to his influence on the boy, seeing as he was a fox after all.

Back in the present, the professor nodded absently, no doubt processing all the information about the intricacies of chakra. A moment later, the far-away look in his eyes was gone, and he spoke again, "This 'chakra'...it sounds almost like Aura."

"Aura?" Naruto cocked his head to the side.

"Yes, Aura. It is the manifestation of one's soul, and can be used as a weapon, shield, or even to heal wounds. Mind you, the effectiveness of all three depends on the innate skill, talent, and experience of the user."

"Hm. It does seem to bear a small resemblance to chakra, but it sounds almost like an inferior version of it."

The professor nodded understandingly, "Yes, I figured as much seeing what you can perform with chakra. That aside, do you have any more questions?"

"Yes...regarding the hunters,"

"Oh?" Ozpin raised a single brow in curiosity, but there was a small smirk playing across his lips.

"How do I become one?"

The smirk was now replaced by a serious expression as he adjusted his spectacles a slight bit before speaking, his tone all business now, "Standard procedure for aspiring hunters would require the attendance of special schools, such as Signal, which is just off the East coast of Vale. There you would receive basic combat training, among other things. Upon graduation, you would then be invited into an academy dedicated to educating hunters, such as Beacon."

He gave the blonde before him another small smile, "But, seeing as you are obviously very talented in regards to combat, the first step can be skipped, and you can join Beacon directly...if you pass the entrance exam."

"I see. Well, that's all fine and good, but, correct me if I'm wrong, wouldn't I need legal documents and an identity for that? Right now, I don't even exist here." That was something he had thought about for a while now; obviously, he wouldn't get very far in any city or village without some sort of identification, and getting those documents would be a hassle since they would surely require some information that he wasn't willing to forfeit.

A small amount of mischief leaked into Ozpin's smile as he folded his hands in front of him and replied, "Let that be my problem."

Naruto sweat-dropped, _'He'll forge the documents?'_

_**'He'll forge the documents.'**_

Naruto's sweatdrop increased in size, causing his head to slightly tilt to the side, "Are you sure you're a headmaster?"

"Yes, I simply don't prohibit myself from..._bending _the rules a little when the situation calls for it."

The blonde chuckled lightly, "I understand."

Once again, the smile adorning Ozpin's features was gone, replaced by a serious expression, "If you don't mind, I have one more question for you, Mr. Uzumaki."

"Go ahead."

"Why do you want to become a hunter?"

Naruto sighed, and formulated a reply in his mind before he answered.

"I've...left my old life in the past, as you probably already have picked up from what I've told you about myself so far." Ozpin nodded, and Naruto continued, "For the past three years, I've been travelling, with no real purpose. When my mentor told me about Remnant, I didn't know what to expect, but now that I'm here and you've told me about what's going on, I want to use my powers to help the people of this world, and start a life without..." Something flashed in the blonde's eyes, but it was gone so fast Ozpin couldn't quite make out what it was. "Actually, never mind."

Ozpin stared at Naruto for a while, thinking over his response, before sighing and nodding, "I see. I hope that you will be able to find purpose in your life here in Remnant."

Naruto nodded and gave the man a thanks, before speaking again, the tension that was in his voice before now gone, "So, when can I start here at Beacon?"

"The next semester starts in two months, so you could use that time to study and get used to how things work here in Vale, and Remnant in general. I can organize a place for you to live during those two months, and all you expenses will be paid for."

"...What?"

"The next semester. It star-"

"No, the second part."

Ozpin raised an eyebrow in mild curiosity as he reiterated what he had just said, "An apartment will be organized for you in Vale, and your expenses will be paid for. Is there anything wrong with that?"

"Ah, no, it's nothing." Truth was, the notion of someone doing something for him without asking for anything in return was completely alien to Naruto. Scratch that, someone doing _anything _for him was a weird feeling. Sure, he did meet people during his travels who obviously didn't hold anything against him, but since he didn't stay in one place for too long, the only company he really had was Kurama.

Not that that was a bad thing. On the contrary, Naruto was extremely thankful to the Bijū for all he had done for him, and the two had grown rather close during the three years, not only as a student and his teacher, but also as partners and as friends. Mind you, the fox would probably try to kill him if he were to ever state that aloud.

"Well, if that is all, Mr. Uzumaki, I will have someone escort you to the residential district in Vale and help you settle in. Just be at the place where we arrived with the airship earlier in fifteen minutes."

Naruto gave him a small smile and nodded, "Thanks."

"Ah, and before you leave," he opened a drawer to his left and reached into it, pulling out a small device; the same one he had seen the professor use earlier. He then held it out for Naruto to take, "Take this. If you need to contact me, just pull the two sides apart and tap my name on the screen."

Naruto nodded as he grabbed the device and slid it into a pocket in his jacket, before turning around and making his way to the exit.

"Oh, and Naruto," Ozpin called from behind his desk, causing Naruto to turn around once again.

"Welcome to Remnant," he smiled.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's note: <strong>Another chapter done. Let me know what you think about it in the reviews, I appreciate the feedback.

Until the next chapter of Naruto: Remnants of the Past!


	3. Explosions, Snowflakes, and Blondes

**Author's Note: **Yeah, I know, this chapter took rather long to get posted. I actually had it done a few days ago, but I wasn't happy with the end result, so I scrapped around three quarters of it, which I rewrote a few times, after which I also had to make some small adjustments and edits here and there. But, after many hours in front of my laptop screen, and many cups of coffee, it's done. Also, I'm not going to write down every single scene in RWBY, as that would be extremely redundant, both for myself and for you readers. So, if a scene isn't written out, just assume it played out as it normally did, unless something else is clearly stated.

I'd also like to address some reviews regarding what kind of semblance Naruto will get. The answer is none, reason being that he's already _very_ powerful for the RWBY universe, (trust me, you'll see just what he's capable of in later chapters). He will get a weapon though, and I've already got one in mind, but I'm open for suggestions, as nothing is final yet. So, if you have any ideas, please let me know.

That aside, enjoy the third chapter of Naruto: Remnants of the past.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter three: Explosions, Snowflakes, and Blondes<strong>

* * *

><p>According to Naruto's internal clock, it was just past one in the afternoon as he walked down one of the many busy streets of Vale.<p>

Two months had passed since he arrived in Remnant, or Vale to be more specific. After his talk with Ozpin, he had been escorted to a small apartment in the residential district of Vale. It was a nice, spacious, two-room apartment, complete with furniture and appliances; more than Naruto had expected for his rather short stay, never mind the fact that he was almost a complete stranger to Ozpin. Not that he didn't appreciate it; on the contrary, he had been very grateful for the living arrangements, and the fact that the professor came up for his expenses, which he did try to keep to a minimum.

Most of his time in Vale was spent on studying and reading about the world of Remnant and its history, something he had been able to do very efficiently thanks to his shadow clones. Whenever he visited the public library, he would borrow a wide variety of books, which he and his clones would study back at his apartment, but sometimes he left that task to them while he was out training in the forests bordering on Vale, or simply taking a stroll through the city.

Speaking of the city, now that he actually experienced life here in Vale for a bit, he noticed that it wasn't completely unlike Konoha. The greatest differences lied in the cities infrastructure, in which Vale had taller buildings, called sky scrapers, and broader roads to fit 'cars', which had taken Naruto some time to get used to. Aside from that, and the way the people here looked and dressed, it really was almost like Konoha.

Well, minus all the death-glares and beatings he received while walking through the village. But where Jinchūriki were cast out, shunned and discriminated in the Elemental Nations, here in Remnant it was the Faunus that were the social outcasts. They were 'humanoid beings' with animal traits, such as ears or tails, as the books in the library described them.

For Naruto, they were like any other human living in Remnant...and they reminded the blonde Uzumaki of himself and his time in Konoha.

While the treatment they received wasn't nearly as bad as Naruto had it back in his old village, it was still harsh; shops would refuse to sell to them, let alone grant them entrance, and people would publicly ridicule them. It made Naruto's blood boil when he witnessed it, and Kurama had to talk some sense into him before he leveled the surrounding few blocks.

That wasn't to say that the ancient Bijū was okay with it though; he had considered giving Naruto some chakra for the sole reason of ripping a few of those people to shreds. Now, Kurama wasn't described as a being of pure hatred for nothing, which was due to many centuries of being sought after as a weapon, but his time with Naruto had at least lessened his hatred against humanity, so even he felt somewhat inclined to help the Faunus.

Nevertheless, seeing as homicide was quite high on the list of things Naruto could _not_ afford to do, he settled for the next best available option: Pranks.

Oh, how he had missed giving shops a nice in- and exterior re-design, whether it be in neon pink, or his signature orange. The blonde Uzumaki and his tenant always had a good chuckle when the incidents started to appear in the local newspaper, showing pictures of fuming shop-keeps standing in front of their newly painted shops, obviously ranting and raving as the pictures were taken.

Naruto chuckled lightly as he remembered one of the times that had happened, causing a few people that were passing by to give him weird looks. The blonde didn't mind that in the least though as he continued on his way to where the airships would pick him and the other students up for the flight to Beacon.

That was when he heard an all to familiar phrase.

"Get out of here you filthy Faunus thief!"

The blonde turned to look across the street, and he saw a bakery with various cakes and sweets on display behind a glass window. That wasn't what caught his attention though, but rather the fuming baker with a loaf of bread in his hand as he shouted at a little Faunus girl.

Her cat-like ears were drooped, and she was silently sobbing as the man continued to shout at her in anger and disdain. Her hands were idly fiddling with the dirty rag of a t-shirt she was wearing, no doubt hoping for it to stop.

Naruto's fists clenched, but he didn't act on the urge to beat the man to a pulp.

The blonde crossed the road in a blur and appeared next to the girl, causing both her and the baker to shift their attention to him as he spoke, his tone dangerously calm and polite, though the man didn't seem to catch up on that.

"Excuse me, sir, what seems to be the problem?"

The baker smirked smugly, no doubt assuming that the black-clad man would join him, "This filthy Faunus tried to steal from me!" As if to emphasize his point, the man raised the loaf of bread in his right hand and waved it around.

"Hm. Stealing _is _very wrong for a young girl like you," Naruto told the Faunus girl in a stern voice, causing her to flinch and the smug smirk the baker was sporting to grow even larger.

Naruto then bent down to face the girl, and whispered, "I, on the other hand, have no such qualms." With a smirk that was hidden behind his mask and a small wink, Naruto straightened and turned to the baker, or rather his shop behind him with and pointed at the window with an almost bored expression, "Uh, sir, there's another one."

The baker immediately turned around, only to see one of the luxurious looking slices of cake he had out on display gone, but to his surprise, there was no-one inside of the bakery. With a furious expression on his face, he turned around, only to see the stranger and the girl gone, along with the loaf of bread he had in his hand, which was replaced with an afterimage that dissipated a second later.

Naruto chuckled lightly as he heard the baker explode in fury. "I guess he noticed that I stole the bread as well," he said as they rounded a corner, with the young girl leaning against the wall and taking a few breaths.

"Here," Naruto said as he handed her the slice of cake and the loaf of bread, which caused her sapphire-blue eyes to sparkle brightly and her ears to twitch, something the blonde found to be rather adorable.

"T-Thank you, mister!" She said happily, her face lit up with joy.

Naruto gave her a sad smile and ruffled her hair, "It's alright, I-"

Before he could finish the sentence, he heard the voice of another child, "Sapphire!"

Turning around, he noticed two young Faunus' running in his direction, both of them around the girl's age. He was about to say something before one of them, a young boy with red hair and what looked like wolf ears, charged at him, his fist cocked back to deliver a punch to the blonde.

Said blonde raised an eyebrow in curiosity, before simply side-stepping the clumsy attack, causing the boy to slam into the wall...if Naruto hadn't hooked a finger underneath the collar of his shirt before he did so.

"Get away from her!" He shouted as he whirled around, throwing another fist which the blonde dodged easily. That was when the girl with the cat ears and blue eyes called out, "Flame, s-stop! He helped me..."

His previous anger now replaced by surprise, the boy turned to his friend, seeing a loaf of bread and a piece of cake in her hands. That was when the other boy arrived, who had black hair with raccoon ears poking out of it, and also a raccoon tail that swayed slowly behind him.

"You...you helped her?" One of the two boys, Flame, who was probably also the 'leader' of the trio, turned to Naruto with a small amount of suspicion in his eyes.

The blonde's eyes didn't betray anything as he leaned down a bit and...flicked the boy's forehead with his index finger, causing him to yelp in pain and his companions to giggle in amusement.

"Hey! What the hell was that for?!"

"For attacking me."

"But I didn't even hit you!"

"Of course you didn't. You're a few decades too early, kid."

The boy began to grumble something under his breath, his face sporting a mixture of annoyance and frustration. Naruto reached down to ruffle his hair, "These two are your friends, right?"

"Yeah, what's it to you?"

A small smile appeared on Naruto's face, though it was hidden by his mask, "Nothing, I was just curious. Take good care of them." With that, he turned and began to leave.

"You bet I will!" The boy called as Naruto began to leave. The blonde simply continued on, throwing a wave over his shoulder, and out of the corner of his eye noticed a shadow quickly dart into in alley.

**Airship, 1:15pm**

* * *

><p>Naruto was currently sitting on one of the rows of seats on the airship he and the other students were on. He had boarded it a few minutes ago, and was now busy observing his soon-to-be peers, who, tersely said, didn't look interesting at all. His gaze drifted across the room, until it landed on two girls that seemed to stand out from the crowd.<p>

The older one of them, who currently had the other in a bone-crushing hug, had long, messy blonde hair, which was a just a shade lighter than his own. Her outfit consisted of a tan vest, which she wore over a yellow top with a black crest that looked like a burning heart. She also wore short, black shorts, over which she had a white back-skirt, and brown leather boots that reached to just below her knees.

The other one, who seemed to be around a year younger than Naruto, seemed to prefer darker colours, as her outfit was mostly black with a red trim. Even her hair was black with a red tint to it. Other than that, she wore a black blouse, a black combat-skirt and a deep-red cape that flowed down her back.

"Oh, I can't believe my baby sister is going to Beacon with me! This is the best day ever!" Yang said in a cheerful tone, after which she released her sister, who had already begun protesting due to lack of oxygen, "Please stop."

"But I'm so proud of you!" The blonde replied with a large smile on her face.

"Really sis', it was nothing."

"What do you mean? It was incredible! Everyone at Beacon is going to think you're the bee's knees."

The young girl apparently disliked the idea of that happening, "I don't want to be the 'bee's knees', okay? I don't want to be any kind of knees! I just want to be a normal girl with normal knees."

Her sister's expression softened slightly, "What's with you? Aren't you excited?"

The girl sighed in response, "Of course I'm excited...I just...I got moved ahead _two years._ I don't want people to think I'm special or anything."

Her sister gave her a comforting smile as she walked over to her and threw an arm around her shoulders, "But you _are_ special."

Naruto stopped listening to them as his and the students' attention shifted to the hologram that popped up in front of one of the windows of the ship, displaying a mugshot of a man with orange hair, with bangs that swept to the side and covered half of his face. A voice began talking about the notorious criminal Roman Torchwick, who had apparently robbed a dust shop and was still evading authorities.

Shortly after the man was done, the picture changed to that of a woman with silver hair, who began to report about a Faunus civil rights protest, which was apparently disrupted by the White Fang, a political organisation that, from what Naruto knew, started out as a symbol of peace between humans and Faunus following the end of the Faunus Rights Revolution. But as of the change of leadership some five-odd years ago, they resorted to more and more violent methods to achieve equality between themselves and humans.

Naruto personally found that approach pointless; if anything, it would only sow more seeds of hatred between the two races, which already seemed to be the case. He did however understand them to an extent; Kami only knew what he would've done if he had stayed in Konoha.

His musings were cut short as the the picture again flashed out of existence, and was replaced with the hologram of a middle-aged woman with light-blonde hair, who proceeded to address the students on board of the ship.

"Hello, and welcome to Beacon," she greeted in a pleasant voice.

Naruto heard the older of the two sisters he had observed before ask the other, "Who's that?"

She received her answer not a moment later as the woman introduced herself, "My name is Glynda Goodwitch."

"Oh."

"You are among a privileged few who have received the honor of being selected to attend this prestigious academy. Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace, and as future Huntsmen and Huntresses, it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task, and now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world."

The person, or rather their hologram, then faded out of existence, revealing Beacon academy beneath the airship. Various students rushed to the windows to get a look at it, 'ooh-ing' and 'aah-ing' at the impressive sight.

Naruto remained in his seat and looked over his shoulder at the town below. His enjoyment of the sight was cut short though as he heard rapid footsteps and groaning behind him. Turning his head, he saw a blonde guy about his age run past him, one hand covering his mouth as he began to retch.

He was stumbling over to the blonde girl from before, causing Naruto to sweat-drop, and his tenant, who was watching everything, to chuckle in amusement.

**"Three..."**

_'Two...'_

**"One..."**

"Bleeerggh!"

"Oh, Yang, gross! You have puke on your shoe!"

Naruto's sweat-drop increased in size as the blonde girl, whose name was now revealed to be Yang, began freaking out, which in turn caused Kurama to laugh his ass off.

"Gross, gross, gross, gross, gross!"

"Get-Get away! Get away from me! Get away from me! Get away from me! Get away from me!"

**"Seems like we're off to a wonderful start!" **The Bijū chortled in Naruto's mind, causing the latter to roll his eyes, "Oh, joy."

A few moments later, the blonde felt the ship dock to the platform of Beacon. He stood up from where he was sitting and made his way to the exit of the ship, and once again the guy who obviously suffered from motion sickness ran past him, throwing up his lunch into a trash can.

_'Guess he doesn't do too well with airships,' _Naruto thought with a shrug.

**"What tipped you off?"**

Deciding to ignore his tenant's sarcasm, the blonde Uzumaki continued to make his way to the main buildings of the academy, and noticed the young girl from earlier standing on the way there with another girl, who had snow-white hair which was was pulled back into an off-center ponytail.

She was currently in the process of ranting at the younger girl with the red hair, and judging by all the luggage lying around on the pavement, it was probably due to her tripping over it.

**"Go help her out," **the Bijū all but commanded, pulling Naruto's attention off the two.

_'Hm? Why?'_

**"Because you're a social trainwreck. Might as well try to make some friends here." **Three years ago, Kurama probably wouldn't have given a damn about his container's life, but ever since the blonde had managed to befriend him, the Bijū did take his life and well-being into consideration...to an extent.

_'...Can't argue with that.'_

With that, the blonde made his way to the two, and noticed that the girl with the white hair was currently shaking a vial of Dust in the other girl's face, causing the blonde to sigh, _'She really shouldn't sha-'_

He didn't get to finish the sentence in his mind as the red-haired girl sneezed because of all the Dust in her face, causing a small explosion of fire, ice and lightning, which covered both of the two in soot.

"Unbelievable! This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!" The white-haired princess exclaimed as she shook the soot off and glared at the other girl, but before said girl could reply, Naruto stepped in.

"You know, it was your fault for shaking the vial around like that," the blonde stated in an almost casual tone; anyone used to handling Dust should've known that it was extremely volatile, even more so when ground to actual dust.

He received a glare from the girl he had dubbed Snowflake, "And just who are you?!"

The blonde smirked, though it was hidden behind his face-mask, "Ask a little more politely and I just might tell you, princess."

"It's heiress, actually." The trio turned to the source of the voice, which was an undoubtedly beautiful girl with long, wavy black hair flowing down her back as she sauntered towards them, her burning amber eyes observing them calmly.

"Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. One of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world."

This seemed to please Snowflake as she smirked smugly, "Finally! Some recognition!" That same smirk was wiped off her face though as the black-haired girl continued, her tone and the look on her face indicating that she obviously didn't give a damn about Weiss being the heiress of the Schnee Dust Company.

"The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces and questionable business partners."

Naruto chuckled and the girl with the red hair giggled as Weiss began to stutter, obviously flustered by the girl's statement, "Wha- How dare you- The nerve of...Ugh!" With that, Snowflake stormed off, various servants gathering her luggage and following behind her.

"I promise I'll make this up to you!" The young girl called after her, to which she received no response. She sighed "I guess I'm not the only one having a rough first day...So, what's..." looking up, she noticed the girl with the black hair walking away. Luckily for her, the black-clad man was still there, so her first day wasn't completely ruined.

Naruto decided to introduce himself properly now that Snowflake was gone, and removed his face-mask and hood, holding out his hand for the young girl to take.

"I'm Naruto," he said with a smile.

"Ruby," she replied with a small smile of her own and a faint blush as she saw his rather handsome features.

"So, what was the deal with Snowflake?"

Ruby gave him a sheepish grin, "Well, I kinda' tripped over her luggage and then she-"

Before she could continued, they were interrupted by another voice, "Uh, hey, do you guys know where we have to go?"

Naruto turned his head to the source of the voice, which was a person both he and Ruby recognized all too well. He had blonde hair, not unlike his own, but while Naruto's reached down to his shoulder blades, his was rather short, reaching just below his ears.

His outfit consisted of a white chestplate and shoulder armor, under which he wore a black hoody with orange sleeves. He also wore simple, blue pants with a white patch over the left knee, and two belts of different shades of brown crisscrossing over his waist, to which a few pouches were attached.

Naruto smirked in amusement, "Aren't you the guy that hurled on the ship?"

Ruby snorted at that, and the blonde guy began to explain what happened earlier, "You know, motion sick-"

Naruto waved him off, "Yeah, it's a common problem, I know. Anyway, we should get to the amphitheater if we don't want to miss Ozpin's initiation speech."

The two agreed with him, and so the trio began to make their way to the hall where Ozpin would hold a speech for all the new students, with Naruto leading as he doubted the two of them had any idea as to where they were supposed to go.

"What did you say was your name again?" Naruto asked his fellow blonde as they walked down the stone-paved path.

The latter cleared his throat before replying in what he probably thought was a 'smooth' tone, "Jaune Arc! Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue - ladies love it!"

The blonde had a hard time believing that, and so did Ruby apparently as she replied with a small amount of skepticism, "Do they?"

"They will! Well, I-I hope they will. My mom always says that...never mind."

Naruto chuckled, "I'm sure they'll love it, Casanova."

Ruby giggled slightly before deciding to change the topic, "So what weapons do you two use? I've got this thing."

With that, she pulled out her weapon from behind her, which proceeded to unfold into a large scythe, easily dwarfing her in terms of size.

"Woah! Is that a scythe?" Jaune jumped back as Ruby embedded the tip of it into the stone pavement, apparently intimidated by the large scythe.

"It's also a customizable, high-impact sniper rifle," she said, cocking the weapon with a smile. Jaune didn't seem to quite follow, "A wha...?"

"Impressive," Naruto stated as his gaze traveled up and down the weapon. It was his first time seeing a weapon from Remnant, and if what he had read about them in various books was anything to go by, one of the most dangerous types as well. He didn't know how well Ruby could handle it, considering its size, but he assumed that she could do so well enough.

"Thanks, I designed it myself," Ruby replied, quite enjoying the attention her 'baby' was receiving.

"Wait, you made that?!" The blonde-haired teen asked incredulously, and even Naruto had to admit that he was surprised and rather impressed by that. '_Guess I know who to ask for advice when I start working on _it_,' _he thought.

His thoughts were interrupted as Ruby asked, "What do you two have?"

Jaune unsheathed a sword from the scabbard attached to his hip, "Oh! I, uh...I got this sword!"

"Ooooh," Ruby exclaimed, while Naruto examined the blade more closely; from what he could tell, it wasn't like the kind of weapon Ruby had, but rather a simple sword. Then again, even the simplest of weapons could be deadly in the hands of a master...though Naruto did have his doubts about that being the case in this situation.

His musings were interrupted as Jaune spoke again, "Yeah, and I've got a shield, too!" He removed the scabbard from the belts around his hip and raised it up as it began to expand into a white shield with gold trimming, and two arcs on the front of it in the same colour.

"So, what do they do?" Ruby touched the shield, and accidentally triggered its mechanism, causing it to retract and expand rapidly as Jaune tried to catch it.

"The shield gets smaller, so when I get tired of carrying it, I can just...put it away..."

"That wouldn't have any impact on its weight though, would it?" The blonde asked, an eyebrow raised in amusement at Jaune's flawed logic.

His fellow blonde sighed dejectedly, "Uh...no..."

The blonde Uzumaki continued, "It seems like a good sword though. Where I come from, we use these kinds of weapons as well." This seemed to lift his spirits a slight bit as he gave him a smile.

"Where do you come from?" Ruby asked, her head tilted slightly to the side.

Naruto gave her a smirk, "That's a secret."

The young girl pouted slightly at that, but let it go after a few moments, "Anyway, what weapon do you use?"

The blonde Uzumaki shrugged, "None...or at least not yet."

Both Ruby and Jaune looked at him as if he had grown a second head, and the latter asked, "You...you don't? How do you fight?"

"With my fists," the blonde replied flatly, raising his hands as if to emphasize his point. Before either of them could argue about how a human could fight a Grimm with just their fists, Naruto spoke again, "Anyway, we should hurry up if we don't want to miss the speech."

A few minutes later, the trio arrived at the amphitheater, where a large amount of students were already gathered, including the blonde girl from earlier that Naruto had seen. Said girl began to wave at them, or rather at her sister Ruby as they entered.

"Ruby, over here! I saved you a spot!"

"Oh! That's my sister Yang, let's go join her!" Naruto didn't see any harm in that, so he followed the girl through the crowd, with Jaune in front of him.

Yang gave her sister a smile as she joined her, "So, how's your first day going, little sister?"

Ruby gave her a half-hearted glare, "Just perfect, after you ditched me. Anyway, guys, meet my sister Yang. Yang, this is Jaune, and that's Naruto."

The blonde girl began to giggle as she saw Jaune, "Aren't you vomit boy?" Jaune, who was just about to introduce himself, let his head hang and stepped aside along with his damaged pride. Naruto shrugged at that and extended a hand, "Nice to meet...you...?"

The blonde Uzumaki trailed off as he noticed the woman giving him, and by extension, his body an almost...hungry look, her lilac eyes roaming over his cloaked form.

"Why, hello there, handsome," she gave him a wink, before leaning down and throwing an arm around her sister. "Where did you find this hottie?" She whispered, still staring at the person she was talking about.

Naruto, of course, had heard that, and his instincts were currently screaming at him to high-tail it in the opposite direction. The blonde wasn't one to ignore them, but opted to turn to his tenant for help first, as running away would be rather rude.

_'Kurama...some help, please?'_

The mighty Bijū suppressed a snicker, **"What with?"**

The blonde Uzumaki was getting a little freaked out, as Yang was still staring at him, _'I...don't even know.'_

This earned him a chuckle from Kurama; the Bijū honestly wasn't surprised by the fact that his container was completely clueless when it came to women, as his only interaction with members of the opposite sex was getting his lights knocked out by that pink-haired banshee.

Luckily enough, before Yang could jump Naruto, Kami seemed to notice the blonde's distress and sent help. In the (very ironic) form of a still very pissed off Weiss Schnee.

"You!"

Ruby shrieked as she heard the familiar voice, before jumping into a set of muscled arms which belonged to Naruto, who was forced to catch the girl. "Oh god, it's happening again!"

"You're lucky we weren't blown off the side of the cliff!" Weiss scolded her, hands on her hips. Naruto decided to ignore the girl in his arms for a moment as he addressed Snowflake with a raised eyebrow, "I still think it's your fault for shaking that vial around; you really ought to be more careful, Snowflake."

She turned to give the blonde a harsh glare, which was greatly toned down by the blush staining her cheeks as she saw his face without the hood or mask obstructing it. "Y-You stay out of this!"

Meanwhile, Yang was staring at her sister with wide eyes, "You...exploded?"

A moment later, the look of surprise on Yang's face was replaced with a sly grin as she pointed above Ruby, causing the girl to frown and look up. Her face took on an almost violent shade of crimson as she came face-to-face with Naruto, who was staring down at her curiously. This went on for a few moments before Ruby regained her composure and quickly jumped out of his arms, only to have a pamphlet shoved into her face by Snowflake.

"What's this?"

In hindsight, she really regretted having asked that question, as the young heiress began listing off various policies of the Schnee Dust Company regarding the usage of Dust, her voice getting progressively higher-pitched as she continued.

Naruto's eyes widened a fraction as he noticed this.

_'Genjutsu?' _As discreetly as he could, the blonde brought up his hand in a half-ram seal underneath his cloak. "Kai," he whispered, but much to his surprise, the girl's voice was still getting higher and higher with every word she spoke, to the point where Naruto cursed his improved senses; hearing, to be exact.

While the blonde Uzumaki was working out what kind of genjutsu the girl was using, Ruby looked at the heiress with a half horrified and half dumbfounded expression as she finished listing off policy after policy, "Uhhh...?"

"You really want to start making things up to me?"

Ruby smiled nervously, "Absolutely...?"

Weiss handed her the pamphlet. "Read this, and don't ever speak to me again," she quipped.

That was when Yang decided to step in, "Look, uh, it sounds like you two just got off on the wrong foot. Why don't you start over and try to be friends, okay?"

Ruby put the pamphlet away and nodded, a smile on her face, "Yeah! Great idea, sis'."

With that, she held out her hand for the heiress to take, "Hello Weiss, I'm Ruby! Wanna' hang out? We can go shopping for school supplies!"

Weiss replied in a mock-excited voice, "Yeah! And we can paint our nails and try on clothes and talk about cute boys, like tall, blonde, and scraggly over there!" She pointed to Jaune, who perked up slightly at the mention.

Ruby, who apparently didn't do well with sarcasm, asked in surprise, "Wow, really?!"

The whole room seemingly fell silent as Weiss glared at the girl for a few moments, before answering, "No."

Soon enough, their attention was pulled to the stage on which professor Ozpin and his assistant, Glynda Goodwitch were standing. The former adjusted his spectacles before speaking.

"I'll...keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose...and direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

With that rather vague and mysterious speech, the professor left the podium, leaving the students to whisper among themselves. The whispering came to a halt as professor Goodwitch's voice now rang through the hall.

"You will gather in the ballroom tonight; tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed." With that, she, too, left the podium, and the crowd of students began began to disperse.

**Beacon academy ballroom, 10:32pm**

* * *

><p>Night had fallen over Vale, and the first-year students of Beacon academy were currently in the ballroom, where they would spend the night before the initiation the next day. Among them, of course, was Naruto, who was sitting by himself at one of the far walls of the room, leaning against it as he absently let his gaze drift across the room.<p>

_'What do you think of all this?'_ He asked his inner demon.

**"We've been here for barely a day. Other than the fact that the people here are rather...amusing, they're all still children. Though that is somewhat understandable, seeing as they're lived in a time of peace." **Yes, there were the Grimm, but the citizens of the four kingdoms of Remnant were relatively safe due to the fact that there were borders keeping the creatures out, and the few that did manage to pass through those borders would be quickly disposed of by the military and the Hunters.

_'Aren't I a child as well though?' _The blonde Uzumaki asked with just a hint of amusement.

**"You know what I meant, brat. You might still be a child, but you were forced to grow up."**

_'I suppose that's true.'_

**"And for your sake, I hope that they will grow up quickly as well," **the Bijū stated in a serious tone, **"You remember what that man told you about the teams, do you not?"**

Naruto nodded; during his time in Vale, he had had many 'chats' with the professor, and by extension, his assistant, Glynda Goodwitch.

In one of them, the man had revealed to him that the initiation wasn't just a test they had to pass, but also served to form teams, which normally consisted of four members. He also said that, once made, these teams could not be changed, unless extreme circumstances, like death or expulsion from the academy would occur. The fact that the teams remained the same during the four years at Beacon also meant that missions would be taken in that team at some point.

The concept wasn't unlike the one behind the four-man cells in Konoha, but the key differences were the positions; while one would have a team of three genin and one jōnin in Konoha, the teams at Beacon would be comprised of four rookies, with one of them as the captain of it.

Not the most effective build for a team, as the captain would lack experience that one had from being in the field, but Naruto chalked that up to the fact that they 'only' had to fight Grimm here, while in the Elemental Nations, villages more often than not warred amongst themselves, whether it be due to assassination attempts on important figures in the village, or simply because of power struggles between the villages.

Naruto was shaken out of his thoughts by his tenant, **"What do you make of this?"**

The blonde sighed, gathering his thoughts before replying, _'It's...weird, to say the least.'_

**"How so?"**

_'This is the first time I'm actually with people since I've left Konoha,' _he thought; of course, he had met people during his travels, but he was almost constantly on the move. _'I guess it's just kind of weird walking into a crowded place, talking with people and not being glared or cursed at.'_

Kurama chuckled, **"This is your life now, I suggest you get used to it."**

Naruto's lips turned up in a small smile as he saw Ruby and her sister Yang talking about something, after which the former threw pillow into her sister's face.

_'I guess so. That aside, anything you want me to train, sensei?'_

There was silence for a moment as Kurama thought about it. After another few moments, the Bijū replied, **"No. I don't think you could leave this place right now to go train in that accursed forest, and training anything here is obviously out of the question, unless you wish to level the academy."**

_'...Right, guess I'll just read then.'_

With that, he cut the mental connection with his tenant and fished out a small book from his bag, the title of which read simply 'Fairy Tales', written in bold, golden letters on the cover of the book. He let his gaze drift across the room once again, looking for a suitable place to read, until it landed on the girl from earlier who had managed to throw off Snowflake with barely two sentences. She was dressed in plain, black yukata with grey and white trimmings, and reading a book next to a few lit candles.

The blonde Uzumaki stood up and made his way to her. As he approached her, he noticed the black-haired girl look up from her book, a small amount of annoyance on her face as she looked at the person distracting her from her book, which Naruto understood; he also disliked being interrupted when studying or simply reading.

"Hey, do you mind if I read here?"

She looked at him for a few seconds, then to the book in his hand, before nodding and returning to her own book, "Go ahead."

"Thanks." With that, Naruto sat down a few feet away from her, so as to not invade her personal space. After he got comfortable, he opened the book and flipped a few pages, before he reached the one where he had left off. It was the tale of 'Little Red Riding Hood', and he had to admit that, from what he had read so far, it was a rather weird story; a girl with a red cloak, out alone in the forest to deliver food to her grandmother while a wolf tried to eat her along with said food.

But then, the Elemental Nations had quite a few weird fairy tales as well. He dismissed those thoughts as he began to read, sharing a pleasant silence with the girl next to him.

That was until she spoke a few minutes later, looking over to the book in his hands, "Aren't you a little too old for Fairy tales?"

Naruto looked up from his book and gave her a smirk, "Aren't you a little too young for smut?" The girl had the decency to blush as she followed his gaze to her open bag, from which "Ninjas of Love" was peaking out. She quickly pushed the book back in, causing Naruto to chuckle in amusement, before actually answering her question, "I'm not from here, so I've never read them before."

"I-I see," she replied, her gaze still averted and her cheeks still tinged pink.

"What are you reading?" The blonde asked her, eyeing the book in her hands as well.

She answered a moment later after regaining her lost composure, "It's a story about a man with two souls, each fighting for control over his body."

Naruto had to suppress a chuckle at that as he thought about how it resembled the situation he and his tenant had been in a few years prior. While it wasn't exactly him trying to take over his body, he did in a sense try to take him over with his hatred and chakra to break free from his body.

The black-haired girl seemed to notice the look of slight amusement on his whiskered face, to which she raised an eyebrow, "Is anything funny?"

The blonde apologized, "No, sorry. It's just that your book reminds me of a certain...situation." She didn't quite follow him, but nodded anyway. It was then that Naruto realized that he didn't even know her name. "I'm Naruto, by the way," he introduced himself.

She gave him a small smile, probably the first Naruto had seen from her, "Blake."

With that, the two returned to their respective books, reading in relative silence before a voice interrupted them, calling out in a sing-song, "Hel~loooo!"

Looking up, Naruto noticed Yang and Ruby approaching them, the former approaching them while she forcibly dragged the latter along with her. "Hello Ruby, Yang," Naruto greeted the two, while Blake stared at them in slight annoyance as she was distracted from reading once again.

"Hey there, hottie," the blonde greeted Naruto, before turning to Blake, "Anywaaay, I believe you two know each other?" She asked, one arm around her sister who was looking slightly uncomfortable.

"Aren't you the girl that exploded?" Blake asked evenly.

"Uh, yeah! My name's Ruby! But you can just call me Crater-," an embarrassed expression showed on her face before she continued, "...actually, you can just call me Ruby."

"Okay."

Yang decided to help her socially awkward sister out, "So, what's your name?"

Blake sighed, obviously annoyed by the two as she simply wanted to continue reading her book in peace, "Blake."

Naruto noticed the irritated look on Blake's face, and had to admit that it was rather bothersome when one was interrupted while reading. "Yang, Ruby, would you mind continuing this conversation an other time?" he asked politely, earning a frown from Yang, which quickly turned into a smirk.

"Oh come on, foxy, wouldn't you spend some time with me rather than read?"

The blonde tensed slightly, "Foxy?"

Yang gave him a playful smile and pointed to her cheeks, "The whiskers?"

The tension left Naruto's form, "Right, well, I think I'll stick with the book."

His fellow blonde gave him a mock-hurt look, "Aww, you're no fun. What're you reading anyway?"

"A fairy tale."

Ruby smiled, "I love fairy tales. Yang used to read them to my every night before bed...they're one of the reasons I want to be a Huntress."

Blake looked up from her book at that, laughing slightly as she turned her gaze to Ruby, "And why is that? Hoping you'll live happily ever after?"

"Well, I'm hoping we all will. As a girl, I wanted to be just like those heroes in the books...someone who fought for what was right, and protected people who couldn't protect themselves!" She exclaimed with conviction in her eyes.

**"You know, she reminds me of how you once were," **Kurama chuckled in his mind, to which Naruto had to agree; he could really see the parallels.

Blake allowed another small smile to grace her features, "That's...very ambitious for a child," the smile then turned into a frown as she continued, "Unfortunately, the real world isn't the same as a fairy tale."

Again, Naruto found himself agreeing to that; it was something he had found out the hard way.

"Well, that's why we're here! To make it better," Ruby smiled at them, the fire still burning in her silver eyes.

"Oh, I am so proud of my baby sister!" Yang exclaimed, pulling Ruby into a bear hug and lifting her into the air. The feeling wasn't mutual however as Ruby began to flail around, "Cut it out!"

With that, the two began to fight in a cloud of dust, several limbs poking out here and there. Naruto simply shook his head, while Blake tried to break them up, or at least get them to continue it elsewhere so that she could continue reading.

That notion was all but lost as an angry Weiss stormed up to the two, "What in the world is going on over here?! Don't you realize some of us are trying to sleep?"

"Oh, not you again!" Both she and Yang shouted at the sight of each other, before the former turned to Naruto as he dryly stated, "You're not making it any better, you know."

Weiss was about to retort, but Ruby was quicker, "Shh! Guys, she's right! People are trying to sleep!" She tried to break them up, which led to just about the opposite as Snowflake gave her another glare, "Oh, _now_ you're on my side!"

The red-haired girl gave her a frustrated look, "I was always on your side!"

"Yeah, what's your problem with my sister? She's only trying to be nice!"

"She's a hazard to my health!" Weiss retorted.

Blake simply sighed and rolled her eyes at the scene, before turning to Naruto, or rather the empty space he had been occupying a second earlier.

**With Naruto**

* * *

><p>"Thank Kami for the body flicker," Naruto sighed as he appeared on the roof of the academy and continued reading his book under the moonlight.<p>

**The next day**

* * *

><p>Naruto had awoken the next morning at the crack of dawn, like he was used to, and decided to go through a quick morning workout before heading to the Beacon Cliffs for the initiation. Normally, he would've started with some warm-ups before going jogging a couple dozen miles and finishing up with chakra exercises. But, seeing as he didn't have time for that, the blonde settled for a dozen laps around the campus.<p>

After he was done, he returned to the academy for a shower and a quick breakfast, which he had just finished. Currently, he was on his way to the Beacon Cliffs, not having to retrieve anything from the armory as he had everything he needed on his person, or sealed in scrolls.

**Beacon Cliffs, 10:15am**

Naruto had to admit, the Emerald forest was quite a sight from atop the cliff he and the other students were standing on. They were lined up in front of professor Ozpin and professor Goodwitch, a gentle breeze blowing past them as they stood on the silver tiles that served as launching pads. Naruto was standing on the first one, next to Jaune.

"For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest," the professor started calmly, signature coffee mug in hand as he observed the students.

Professor Goodwitch then took over, "Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of 'teams'. Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates...today."

"What? Oooh..." Naruto heard Ruby whine from where she was standing next to Jaune.

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well," Ozpin said, his face not betraying anything as he stared at the students.

Naruto heard Ruby along with a few other students groan. Ozpin didn't pay any mind to that though as he continued, "That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years."

This time, instead of groaning, Naruto heard the sound of glass breaking as an appalled Ruby shouted, "Whaaat?!"

Again, Ozpin didn't pay any attention to that and continued, "After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path...or you _will _die."

Jaune swallowed and laughed nervously, while Naruto chuckled at that, _'He makes it sound so dramatic.' _

**"Well, there is a realistic chance that these kids will die here. Just because you're a shinobi trained by the Kyū****bi** **himself doesn't mean that the same applies to everyone here****."**

_'If they managed to get into this academy, I don't think they're _that _bad off...unless I'm completely overestimating them.'_

**"Bet you you're going to have to save at least one of them during the exam?"**

_'...That's a sucker bet, so, no thanks.'_

Naruto's conversation with his inner demon was interrupted as Ozpin spoke again.

"You will be monitored and graded through the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. You will guard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?"

Naruto raised his hand, "I'm confused. You say it is in our best interest to partner up with someone whom we can work with, yet the way our partner is determined is by eye-contact."

"That is correct," the professor smiled slightly.

Naruto sweat-dropped, "I sense an intense lack of logic here, but I don't make the rules."

Ozpin's face returned back to his neutral expression, "Anything else?"

This time it was Jaune's turn to raise his hand, "Yeah, um, sir?"

The professor decided to ignore that in favour of finally getting the exam started, "Good! Now, take your positions."

Everyone present took their combat stance on the tiles they were standing on, while Naruto simply crossed his arms over his chest, and Jaune still stood there with his arm raised.

"Uh, sir? I've got, um...a question," he started, after which the first person, Weiss, was catapulted off the cliff and into the forest, something that Jaune didn't seem to notice.

"So, this landing...strategy thing...Uh, wha-what is it? You're, like, dropping us off or something?"

Ozpin was about to speak, but Naruto was quicker, "Jaune, we're being launched into a forest full of Grimm; landing should be the least of your worries. And on that note, you're on your own as far as landing goes." During Naruto's explanation, more and more students were shot into the forest, which Jaune still didn't seem to realize.

"That about sums it up," Ozpin chuckled slightly, while Jaune visibly paled, "Right, so...what exactly is this landing strategYYYY?!" He screamed as he was catapulted into the forest.

Naruto's tile didn't immediately launch him into the forest and he smirked at the two professors, "I'll try to put up a good show for you two." With that, he pushed a large amount of chakra into his legs, and upon noticing the launching mechanism start, expelled it through his feet. That, along with the actual launch, sent him flying much higher than the other students and effectively destroyed the pad he was on, along with a good chunk of the ground.

"This will be interesting," Ozpin remarked as he watched the group of students fly into the forest, before taking a sip of his coffee.

Meanwhile, Naruto, who was higher than the others by now, smirked under his mask as twelve clones spawned around him.

"You know what to do."

"Hai, boss," with that, all of them shot down into the forest in different direction, while the original began to slowly descend, the smirk still present on his face, "Time for the real exam."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Well, that was one hell of a chapter in terms of how long it took me to write. Anyway, I hope the next one will be out quicker, but I can't promise anything.

As always, reviews are very much appreciated.

Until the next chapter.


	4. Players and Pieces

**AN: **Hello, my dear readers, and welcome to the chapter that almost killed me. Well, not really, but I caught a nasty flu about a week ago, but I just couldn't stop working on this chapter. As a result, I didn't exactly get any better, but it was well worth it. That aside, just to clear any misunderstandings, this story will not be a harem, it will be strictly NarutoxBlake.

Anyway, on to the next chapter of Naruto: Remnants of the Past.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter four: Players and Pieces<strong>

* * *

><p>Ozpin and Glynda were both currently overlooking the Emerald Forest, the cool morning breeze rustling their hair and clothing as they watched the cloud of students they had launched into the forest a few minutes prior. Particularly one of them made for a very interesting sight, mainly due to the fact that there were twelve identical clones of him currently descending from high above the forest.<p>

"You did tell me about his rather...peculiar abilities, but actually seeing them is another story," Glynda stated with a look of slight amazement as she watched the clones and the original scatter into the forest, with the latter heading north.

Ozpin seemed unfazed by the sight, contentedly sipping his morning coffee. After all, he had witnessed what Naruto called the Shadow Clone Technique quite a few times already, but even then he had to admit watching a person clone himself ten-fold was rather fascinating...and amusing, seeing as scientists all around Remnant were busting their asses to do just that, while the blonde performed it without breaking a sweat.

Ozpin chuckled slightly at that thought, though it went unnoticed by Glynda, whose brow was furrowed in confusion, even as she brought up the video feed on her Scroll, which showed the various students taking the exam.

"I can't help but wonder, though...why did he create those clones in the first place?" She shifted her glasses slightly, "Using them to fight the Grimm would've been my first guess, but that wouldn't make any sense since all of them scattered into different directions."

The woman's frown deepened, the figurative gears in her head already turning. Suddenly her eyes widened a fraction in realization, "Does he-"

She was cut off by her superior, who chuckled once again as he gazed out into the forest, "Yes, he wants to...evaluate them." The professor took another sip of coffee before continuing, "After all, he _will _form a team with some of them."

The blonde woman nodded in understanding, but the frown remained on her face, "It does seem a bit arrogant of him though."

Ozpin's smile was replaced with a serious countenance as he turned to his assistant, "Glynda, you know just as well as I do that he is well beyond his peers, and quite possibly even those above him." Once again, he turned to gaze out into the vast, emerald-green forest, "You've noticed it by now as well, haven't you?"

The question was vague, cryptic even, but Glynda knew exactly what he was inquiring of her.

Being veteran hunters, both of them had fought countless battles and trained many Huntsmen and Huntresses themselves. Exactly because of that experience, they had the ability to read people, and judge them by the way they acted...to an extent, at least.

What they could pick up from Naruto was unsettling, to say the least. The blonde Uzumaki was seemingly beyond his age, both physically and mentally. He carried himself with the confidence of a seasoned warrior, confidence unfitting of the sixteen-year-old teen he was on the surface. Yet, despite all the confidence in his step, he wasn't the least bit arrogant, showing that he had every right to said confidence, something that was rather unnerving for Glynda.

Both she and Ozpin were of course very curious as to just what he had experienced in the past, where he came from or what it was that made him leave, but each time either of them would bring up those topics when they talked with him, he would outright refuse to continue the conversation. The two eventually stopped broaching the subject, resigning themselves to the fact that he would reveal more of himself if and when he felt comfortable in doing so.

Glynda sighed, just a hint of frustration marring her features as she watched the blonde subject of their conversation dash through the forest.

**With Naruto**

* * *

><p><strong>"Hunter or not, seems like you're a shinobi after all, kit," <strong>Kurama chuckled, the booming sound echoing through his container's mind as he jumped from branch to branch, making his way to the northern part of the forest.

_'What better way to find out about their abilities than shadowing them in a forest full of creatures that want to kill them?' _Truth be told, he was rather excited to find out more about his peers, and the hunters of Remnant in general. Given, they, and he himself had only just taken the first step to becoming Huntsmen and Huntresses, but the fact that the others were invited to Beacon Academy did speak volumes of their skills, or so he hoped.

With a shrug, he poured more chakra into his legs and continued hopping along the branches of the trees, enjoying the feel of the air rushing against his face and body, _'I'll just have to wait for the clones to dispel...' _he thought, a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips as he noticed a malicious presence ahead of him, which originated from a pack of Beowolves, glaring at the blonde as they climbed up the trees.

Any normal person would've probably bolted it in the other direction, but seeing as Naruto was anything _but_ normal, he increased his speed even further, splintering the branches and tree trunks he shot off of.

_'Guess a little warm up while I'm waiting wouldn't hurt,' _He thought, slipping a kunai out of his sleeve which he caught in a reverse-grip.

**"Just don't blow up the** **forest,"** the Bijū warned him with just a hint of amusement leaking into this voice,** "I don't think they would take too kindly to that."**

The blonde nodded as he caught the underlying meaning in the sentence, before clashing with the pack of Grimm.

**Emerald Forest**

* * *

><p>The morning dew was still fresh on the leaves covering the many trees of the Emerald Forest. They swayed lightly as the wind swept through them, and as suggested by the forest's name, it created the image of a beautiful, rippling, emerald-green ocean.<p>

Given, the beauty that it radiated was only out-shined by its deadliness; hidden from view beneath the thick canopy of the trees were the creatures of Grimm, mindless beasts that only waited for foolish wanderer's to enter their den.

Those vile creatures weren't the only beings that inhabited the forest though. No, many other animals lived in the forest alongside the Grimm. A prime example of that was the majestic, black bird that was flying just above the crowns of the trees, unperturbed by what lurked below. In a sense, that bird, however insignificant its life was, represented the duality of the Emerald Forest, demonstrating that it wasn't just a place of death and decay, but also a place where all sorts of life thrived and-

"Birdie, NOOOO!"

With a final shriek, the bird's life came to an abrupt end as a red and black blur shot through it, reducing it to little more than a few feathers. The blur, otherwise known as Ruby Rose, unsheathed her weapon of choice, Crescent Rose, in its rifle form and fired off a few rounds into the forest, slowing down her descent enough so that she could transform her weapon into a scythe and catch a branch with it, allowing her to fall to the ground unharmed.

Uncaring of the fact that she had just murdered a bird, the young girl shot off into the forest. After all, time was of the essence, and she couldn't afford to waste any of it as her goal repeated itself in her mind.

_'Gotta' find Yang. Gotta' find Yang, gotta' find Yang. Gotta' find...'_

"Yang! Yaaaaang!" She shouted, scanning the forest around her for a familiar mane of blonde hair.

_'Oh, this is bad, this is really bad...what if I can't find her? What if someone finds her first?' _She thought, the negative thoughts already beginning to creep up her back. She quickly shook her head free of them; now wasn't the time to be negative...this was the day she had been waiting for since her arrival at Beacon.

Deciding to replace the negative thoughts with more positive ones, she thought about potential teammates aside from her sister. They all popped up in her mind depicted as crudely drawn doodles.

_'There's always Jaune,' _she thought, the corners of her mouth twitching up into a smile as she pictured herself and the blonde teen in her mind, both laughing about something, '_He's nice. He's funny!'_

However, being funny didn't exactly count for much in this death trap of a forest. _'...I don't think he's very good in a fight, though.' _Sure enough, the image of Jaune was attacked by a pack of Beowolves, and, as expected, the blonde didn't last long and ended up as Beowolf food.

'_Ooh! What about Blake?!'_ Another image popped up in her mind, this time that of Blake, in all her doodly glory._ 'So mysterious, so calm...Plus, she likes books! _She frowned,_ 'Then again, I'm not sure I'd be able to hold a conversation with her...' _True to her thoughts, Doodle-Blake was quickly fed up with Ruby's rambling and slowly inched away from her.

Soon after, the third and last picture popped up in her mind, this time that of a certain black-clad blonde. '_Hm...there's also Naruto!' But then, I don't know anything about him either...'_

Without warning, a good dozen Ursai, doodles, mind you, surrounded the Naruto she pictured in her mind. But, much to her surprise, the blonde quickly took care of them all, crossing his arms over his chest as he stood in the middle of all the carnage he had caused. Ruby sweat-dropped at that, '_...he does look like he can fight though.' _Shaking her head free of the images, the scythe-wielder continued on through the forest.

_'Okay...Who else do I know in this school? There's Yang, Jaune, Blake, Naruto, aaaand...'_

As if one cue, a familiar person appeared in her field of view, causing the girl to slam on the brakes and skid to a halt lest she ram into them. As she slowly came to a stop, Ruby looked up just in time to see the person turn to face her.

Icy blue eyes met silver one's as Weiss and Ruby regarded each other, the latter with a small smile lifting the corners of her mouth.

Apparently though, the feeling of joy wasn't mutual, evident by the Schnee heiress turning on her heel and walking off on her 'partner'.

Ruby's smile was wiped off her face as she followed her a few steps, "Wait! Where are you going?!" Her question, however rhetorical it was, went ignored by Weiss, causing the young girl to kick the ground in dejection, "We're supposed to be teammates..."

Neither of the two teens noticed the dark figure above them, perched upon the branch of a tree and leaning against its trunk as he watched the scene unfold. With a sigh, the clone shook his head, _'Breaking the rules five minutes into the exam...boss'll be disappointed.'_

Meanwhile, Weiss was making her way through the thick foliage of a bush, struggling with a branch that had caught on her shoe. She pulled herself free with a small grunt of exertion and smacked a few hanging vines out of her face, sighing in relief, before she heard a voice from above her.

Looking up, she noticed a certain blonde, who was pinned to the trunk of a tree by a red and golden spear, Pyrrha's weapon, Miló, if she wasn't mistaken. Oddly enough, the red-haired amazoness was nowhere to be seen.

"Come on, come on! Stupid...!" Jaune groaned as he fruitlessly tried to pull out said spear.

With a sigh of defeat, he gave up, and looked down, only to curse his luck as Weiss, upon making eye-contact, promptly turned around and walked back where she came from, leaving the blonde to groan in dejection and let his head hang.

"By no means does this make us friends," Weiss quipped, now back with Ruby as she grabbed said girl's hood and pulled her along. If Ruby took offence to the rather cold comment, she didn't show it, instead joyfully exclaiming, "You came back!"

**Later...**

* * *

><p>"What's the hurry?" Ruby asked her partner as she stomped through the forest, apparently still miffed about the fact that they were now partners. She wasn't exactly Ruby's first choice either, but it wasn't the end of the world for the young girl. Well, that, and rules were rules.<p>

"I will not let my mission be delayed because you're too slow! I swear, if I get a bad grade because of your-" she was cut off as Ruby appeared in front of her in the blink of an eye, smiling at the the heiress, whose face lit up in amazement, if just a slight bit.

"What the...?"

"I'm not slow, see? You don't have to worry about me!" The scythe-wielder exclaimed.

The heiress was still trying to figure out how her partner had seemingly teleported from one place to another, looking back and forth between the two. "When did...?"

"Weiss, just because I don't exactly know how to deal with people, doesn't mean I don't know how to deal with monsters." In an instance, she was at her partner's side, throwing an arm around her shoulder, "You're about to see a whole different side of me today, Weiss, and after it's all over, you're going to be like, 'Wow! That Ruby girl is really, really cool...and I wanna' be her friend.'"

With that, she disappeared in a whirlwind of red rose petals, leaving a coughing Weiss as she tried to get rid of said petals. Cocking her hip to the side, she rested one hand on it and called out, "You may be fast, but you still excel at wasting time!" Her call was met with an eerie silence, until it was broken by the rustling of leaves and snapping of twigs, and if that wasn't enough to send her alarm bells ringing, then the darkness that slowly began to leak into the small clearing certainly was.

"Ruby?" She asked somewhat meekly.

Much to her surprise, the creature that emerged from the bushes was not Ruby, but rather a vicious looking Beowolf, glaring at her with its burning eyes. That was until it released its tell-tale roar, which had the desired effect on the heiress as she screamed.

"RUBY!"

**With Yang**

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><p>Yang had just walked into a small clearing, making her way north like the rest of the students and idly searching for her sister, or anything else that would catch her interest. So far, this whole initiation was proving to be rather boring. Hell, she hadn't even encountered a single Grimm yet. But, all that aside, for some reason, she could shake the odd feeling of being watched.<p>

With a shrug, she called out, "Hellooooo?"

Nothing. The only sounds in the clearing were the chirping of birds and that of her own voice. "Is anyone out there?"

She raised her arms in defeat, "I'm getting bored here!"

This time, instead of silence, she heard the rustling of leaves coming from a few bushes behind her. "Is someone there?" She turned, hoping that Ruby had finally found her.

Upon receiving no answer, the blonde decided to walk over to the bushes, pushing the leaves aside and peaking in. "Ruby, is that you?" She asked with a small smile, which quickly turned into a blank expression as she looked up, coming face-to-face with a rather hungry looking Ursa.

"...Nope."

The blonde rolled to the side just in time to dodge the Ursa's swipe as it charged out of the bushes, her Ember Celica already activating and extending over her forearms and wrists as she slipped into her combat stance and observed her surroundings, only to leap to the side once again as another Ursa charged out of the foliage.

Without wasting any time, the first Ursa charged at her again, but was sent flying back as Yang rammed her fist into its body, the strength of which greatly enhanced by the blast of raw kinetic energy from her Ember Celica. Taking that as its cue to attack, the second of the large, bear-like Grimm came at her, but was also thrown back, this time with a hard right hook followed by a high-kick.

"You guys wouldn't happen to have seen a girl in a red hood, would you?" She asked jokingly while the two Ursai were in the process of shaking themselves out their daze. The blonde received her answer shortly after they recovered, though unfortunately she didn't speak 'Ursai'.

"You could've just said 'no'," she grinned, before narrowly dodging two swipes in quick succession from one of the Ursai with a backwards flip.

"Jeez, you two couldn't hit the broad side of a ba-..." she began as she landed a few feet away from them, though quickly trailed off from her taunting as she, and unbeknownst to her, Naruto's clone watched a single strand of blonde hair slowly fall to the ground before her.

"You..." the blonde closed her eyes, and soon, the clearing was permeated with a sense of dread, reminding Naruto of the feeling he felt when harnessing his tenant's chakra, given, the two were nowhere near the same level of intensity. No, this was simply the feeling every female, regardless of species, could generate when adequately pissed off.

Naruto's clone cocked an eyebrow as the teen opened her eyes, revealing the usual lilac colour to be replaced with a fierce crimson.

"You monsters!" She roared, her fury seemingly being reflected by the air around her as it erupted into blazing hot flames, creating a red-orange aura around her as she charged towards one of the Ursai, launching it into the air with a burning punch, before blasting herself forward with her Ember Celica and unleashing a brutal combination of blazing kicks and punches which sent the poor creature on the receiving end of her wrath flying into a tree, breaking it in the process, along with the four behind it. Inevitably, the trees the Ursa had broken during its flight proceeded to crash down on it.

Yang, still livid, turned to the creature's companion, who could only stare as one of its own was reduced to dust by the teen. "What?! You want some too?!"

The being reared up on its hind-legs, getting ready to charge at her once again, but before it could do so, a whirling noise was heard behind it, followed by the sound of metal piercing flesh. The creature stumbled and fell over, dead before it even hit the ground.

Behind it stood Blake, her Gambol Shroud having pierced a vital point in the Ursa's body. With a pull, she dislodged it from the dead creature's body, catching it and sheathing the blade behind her back, before turning to a panting Yang with a smirk gracing her features.

Said blonde shrugged as she caught her breath, finally having calmed down,"I could've taken him."

Up above in the trees, Naruto's clone nodded in approval, before disappearing from sight.

**With Weiss**

* * *

><p><em>'Remember your training, Weiss,' <em>the heiress thought to herself as she was pushed back from a Beowolf's strike, finding herself surrounded by the beasts.

_'Head up, shoulders back, right foot forward - not that forward! - slow your breathing, wait for the right time to strike, and...' _She raised Myrtenaster, its revolver spinning as she shot forward, ready to kill the Beowolf.

However, before the Beowolf could be reduced to ashes, Ruby appeared in the line of her attack, triumphantly exclaiming, 'Gotcha'!' as she slashed at the Grimm.

Weiss, for her part, widened her eyes and diverted her attack in the nick of time, preventing Ruby from being burnt to a crisp. The same couldn't be said for the tree which Weiss' attack collided with though, the stream of fire which shot out of her rapier already licking up the trunk of the tree and setting it ablaze.

The heiress' failed attack distracted Ruby, allowing one of the Beowolves surrounding them to capitalize on that and lash at her scythe, which pushed her back into Weiss.

"Hey, watch it!" The scythe wielder called, turning her attention back to the Grimm.

Weiss glared at her, "Excuse me! You attacked out of turn! I could have killed you!"

Ruby rolled her eyes in response, "You'll have to try a lot harder than that..."

The two readied their weapons, but before they could follow up with a counterattack, the fire from Weiss' attack began to spread, enclosing the two teens and the Beowolves in a ring of fire. Said creatures began to howl as the flames reached them, but Ruby didn't seem to care about that as she readied herself for another attack.

Luckily for them and their continued well being, Weiss wasn't as brave/stupid as her partner, and grabbed her arm as a burning tree fell down next to them.

"We have to go!" With that, the two began to retreat, one more willingly than the other.

A few minutes later, the two found themselves on top of a small hill, with Weiss leaning against a tree as she caught her breath, while Ruby turned around to look at the smoke rising over the trees where they had just been.

"What was _that_?! That should've been easy!" She shouted at Weiss.

Her answer came in form of a glare, "Well, perhaps if you had exercised even the _slightest_ amount of caution with the placement of your strikes, I wouldn't have set the forest on fire!" Emphasizing her point, the heiress pointed at the rising plume of smoke.

The scythe-wielder scoffed at that, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I'm just surprised someone who talks so much would communicate so little during an encounter!"

"Well, I'm sorry you need my help to win a fight. I'm just fine on my own!"

"Well, congratulations on being the strongest child to sneak your way into Beacon. Bravo!" Finished on her part, the heiress spun on her heel and began to walk off into the woods. Ruby, who finally snapped, let out a frustrated shriek before unfolding her scythe and slashing at a tree next to her, cleanly slicing it in half as she proceeded to follow her 'partner', neither noticing the rather over-sized black feather lazily floating to the ground behind them.

**Beacon Cliffs**

* * *

><p>"Our last pair has been formed, sir," Glynda stated, watching the video feed on her Scroll, her normally stoic face betraying that she was slightly impressed with what she was seeing. The woman had just witnessed the end of a fight between a King Taijitu and one of the students, Lie ren, with the latter emerging victorious. Shortly after, another student, Nora Valkyrie, made eye-contact with him, effectively forming the last pair.<p>

"Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren. Poor boy...I can't possibly imagine those two getting along." With another few taps, the video on the display changed to that of Naruto Uzumaki, currently engaged in a fight against several Ursai, who didn't stand much of a chance as the blonde tore through their ranks, killing them with practiced swiftness and accuracy.

"That leaves Naruto Uzumaki as the odd one out...though I suppose you predicted as much."

Ozpin simply hummed in reply, his focus currently on the Scroll in his hands, which was streaming the video of a certain pair of bickering teens who had just set part of the forest ablaze.

"Well, he's still better off than miss Nikos though," she stated as she watched Jaune and Pyrrha walking along a small path, with the latter leading. "I don't care what his transcripts say, that Jaune fellow is not ready for this level of combat." With that, she deactivated her Scroll and walked back a bit.

"I guess we'll find out soon enough though. At their current pace, the rest of them should reach the temple within just a few minutes." The woman stated.

Ozpin either didn't bother to respond or was simply so absorbed in the video feed that he didn't even register his assistant's voice.

"Speaking of which, what did you use as relics this year?"

Once again, she received no indication that he was even listening to her, prompting her to turn around.

"Professor Ozpin?"

**With Weiss and Ruby**

* * *

><p>Ruby was <em>not <em>having a good day. After all the trouble she had the day before, she expected the exam to be the perfect way to prove that she was just as capable a warrior as the rest of the students. The young girl was currently sitting on the ground of a small clearing, picking up a few stray leaves as her 'partner' paced back and forth in front of her, trying to figure out just where they were headed.

"It's definitely this way," the heiress stated, though her voice betrayed that she had absolutely no idea as to where the temple was, or where they themselves were for that matter. A few seconds of musing later, she turned and walked in the other direction, "I mean...this way! It's definitely this way."

She stopped pacing around, "Alright, it's official. We passed it."

Ruby stood up, thoroughly annoyed by her, "Weiss, why can't you just admit that you have no idea where we're going?"

"Because I know exactly where we're going! We're going...to...the forest temple!"

Were it any other situation, she would've deadpanned at that, but as it was, she sighed in frustration.

"Oh, stop it! You don't know where we are, either!"

"Well, at least I'm not pretending like I know everything!"

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?" Weiss asked incredulously, her hands resting on her hips.

"It means you're a big, stupid jerk and I hate you!" Ruby snapped.

As the two continued arguing with each other, a barely audible sigh was heard from up above in the trees, the source of which was Naruto, or rather his clone, who had a huge drop of sweat hanging down the side of his head. It was so large that the clone was having a hard time balancing himself on the branch he was perched on.

"Dear Kami, I don't get paid enough for this shit."

"We don't get paid in the first place, so stop complaining and keep observing." The clone's 'brother' stated, leaning against the trunk above him as he did just what he was tasked with, keeping his eyes on the two arguing teens as he spoke again, "What would you even do with the money?"

His answer came in form of a shrug, "I don't know, go get some ramen, I guess."

The clone looked down at his brother, blinking a few times before both of them shared a smirk, and spoke in unison, "We should get boss to pay us."

**With Yang and Blake**

* * *

><p>Yang and Blake had just stepped out of the treeline, and happened upon what for all the world looked to be the temple Ozpin had spoken about. It certainly was abandoned, evident by the moss and flora growing over the structure, which consisted mostly of broken pillars, with the few that were still intact supporting part of the stone ring resting atop.<p>

"Think this is it?" Yang asked her partner.

Her response came in form of a deadpan, after which the raven-haired girl made her way down the small hill, Yang following close behind. As they reached the temple, the two of them noticed a handful of small pedestals aligned in a circular pattern in the middle of the structure.

Blake walked over to one of them, intent on more closely examining what was resting on top, which turned out to be a chess piece.

"...Chess pieces?" She asked aloud, inspecting a black king with a confused look on her face; chess pieces weren't exactly high up on the list of relics she'd expect to find in an abandoned temple in the middle of a forest full of Grimm.

"Some of them are missing; looks like we weren't the first ones here," Yang called as she noticed just that.

Blake took her attention off the relic, and turned to her partner, "Well, I guess we should pick one."

"How about a cute little pony?" Yang asked as she picked up a golden 'pony', or a knight.

Her partner rolled her eyes at the description, but gave her a smirk nonetheless, "Sure."

Suddenly, they heard the distinct roar of an Ursa in large amounts of pain, and sure enough, said creature was launched out of the treeline, but oddly enough, it was spiraling around as if it had been thrown off a carousel.

Its corpse landed on the ground and skidded to a halt in front of the two, allowing both of them to get a closer look at the sphere shaped wound in its chest.

"Looks like that was the last of them," Naruto stated as he walked into the clearing, noticing with no small amount of relief that he had finally reached the temple. _'About damn time,' _he thought to himself with annoyance; if it weren't for the fact that he had been attacked by packs of Ursai and Beowolves every two minutes on his way here, he would've reached the temple half an hour ago.

"Hey, Naruto!"

"Hm?" The blonde looked up to see that he wasn't the first person to make it to the temple. Yang waved at him with a smile on her face, her partner standing next to her and examining the Ursa he had killed a moment ago.

Naruto waved back at his fellow blonde, walking towards the stone temple as he observed what were probably the relics they had to obtain, "Had any trouble getting here?" Of course, he already knew all about their trek to the temple as his clones had dispelled a while ago, but appearances had to be kept.

Yang scoffed, a smirk gracing her features. "'Course not, Foxy, though I guess the same could be said for you," she replied, pointing at the corpse of the Ursa which was beginning to evaporate, a small grin of approval on her face.

The blonde Uzumaki began to remove his hood, "It's not like this exam is that di-"

He was rudely cut off by a loud, distinctly feminine scream that rang through the clearing, and judging by the volume, likely also through the rest of the forest. Both he and Yang turned to the source, the latter with a worried expression marring her face, "Some girl's in trouble! Did you hear that Blake?"

The blonde Uzumaki couldn't fault her for believing the scream to be of female origin, after all, not everyone had the improved sense of hearing which he possessed.

"If I'm not mistaken, that was Jaune."

Yang gave him an incredulous look, "Uh...you're kidding, right?"

"As much as I'd like to deny it, for his sake...no, that was definitely Jaune."

"Well, we should still do something," Yang replied, looking back into the direction the scream originated from.

The blonde shrugged; last he knew from the clone shadowing Jaune, he was paired with the red-haired amazoness, who seemed to be very capable, so he didn't worry about him...too much.

Deciding the push those thoughts to the side for the moment, the blonde noticed that Blake was somewhat intently staring into the sky, a slight frown on her face.

"What're you..."

He was cut off as she pointed up. The blonde raised an eyebrow, but simply looked up seeing as she wasn't about to elaborate.

Both his and his tenant's eyes widened a fraction, the latter beginning to bellow loudly, **"Brat,"** the demon fox started, **"I think you just got out-Naruto'd." **The blonde nodded absently, his gaze still fixed on the sky; up above, beyond the few clouds dotting the sky, was a gigantic Nevermore.

That in and of itself wasn't that odd though, seeing as this was Vale's equivalent of the Forest of Death. What both Blake and Naruto were looking at though, were the two, almost unnoticeable dots sticking to the bird's body, one white and the other a red-black colour.

Yang, blissfully unaware of the fact that her sister was riding a Nevermore, was still turned away from her companions. With worry still evident in her voice, she asked, "Guys, what should we do?"

Her question was met with silence.

The blonde finally turned around, an annoyed frown on her face as she noticed both of them ignoring her in favour of cloud gazing.

"What is wrong with y-" Before she could finish her sentence, both of the two pointed up at the sky, not once taking their eyes off whatever was up there. Her annoyance replaced with confusion, and she looked up to see a black...something. She narrowed her eyes, trying to get a better look at the thing, which was revealed to be...

"Ruby?!"

Said girl was frantically flailing around with her arms as she continued to fall towards the group, her scream getting progressively louder as she neared them, "HEADS UUUUP!"

As if that wasn't weird enough, another blur proceeded to slam into her, this time a blonde one. Both of them were sent sailing into the trees beyond the clearing.

Blake crossed her arms under her chest, shaking her head while Yang was still in the process of wrapping her head around just what the hell had happened.

"How the hell did they even manage to get on that thing?" A confused Naruto muttered to himself, receiving the answer a few moments later as the memories of the clones he had shadow the two rushed to his mind, also indicating that they had completed their task.

"...Ah."

He decided to go over the details later as Blake asked in her usual monotone, "Did her sister just fall from the sky?"

"Apparently," the blonde replied flatly.

It took a few seconds for Yang's cognitive function to return to her, and as they did she began to speak, "I-"

Before she could formulate her sentence, several loud tremors and the sound of trees being smashed were heard, causing the two blondes and Blake to turn to the source with raised eyebrows. An Ursa stormed out of the tree line, apparently very angry judging by its roars and how it was swiping its claws. The creature was silenced with a blast of pink energy that struck its back, followed by an overly cheerful, "YEEEEE-HAAAAW!"

As the creature fell into the clearing, an orange-haired girl rolled off its back, seemingly having ridden the Grimm into said clearing before its demise.

"Aww...it's broken," she pouted as if her favourite toy had just broken.

_'What the hell...?' _were the collective thoughts of the three as they watched the eccentric girl appear on the Ursa's neck in a blur of motion, mimicking an airplane. Soon after, another person emerged from behind the carcass, presumably her partner.

He leaned against the corpse, catching his breath and speaking in between pants, "Nora...please...don't ever do that again."

Unfortunately for him, his plea fell on deaf ears as Nora was already gone.

Naruto, Yang and Blake stared at the orange-haired girl as she appeared in the middle of the temple, eyeing a golden rook with wide eyes, obviously fascinated by the shiny thing. Naruto sweat-dropped as she grabbed the piece and began to chant, "I'm queen of the cas~tle, I'm queen of the cas~tle!"

"NORA!" her partner shouted, prompting the girl to cease with her singing and dancing as she dropped the chess piece balanced on her head into her hand, and happily skipped over to the raven-haired teen.

"Coming, Ren!"

Naruto, Yang and Blake simply observed the...peculiar scene, before the raven-haired girl turned to Naruto once again, "Did that girl just ride in on an Ursa?"

"Looks like it."

"I-" Yang opened her mouth, but much to her chagrin, she was rudely interrupted once again. Pyrrha, the red-haired amazoness ran into the clearing, looking for all the world like someone had set hell loose on her heels.

Naruto quickly found that to be true, as hell, which was a gigantic, scorpion-like Grimm in this case, emerged from the tree line behind her, uprooting entire trees as it chased what it had probably deemed to be lunch.

The girl jumped between his pincer in a great display of acrobatics as it took a swipe at her, before continuing to run for her life.

Their attention was once again diverted as Ruby jumped down into the clearing, apparently having recovered from her collision with the tree.

"Ruby!" Yang called.

"Yang!" She called back, throwing her arms up to hug her sister, but before they could commence their sisterly bonding, the orange-haired girl appeared between them, "Nora!"

Naruto and Blake ignored that, their attention still focused on the fleeing amazoness and the Death Stalker hot on her heels.

"Did she just run all the way here with a Death Stalker on her tail?"

Naruto turned to the raven-haired girl with a deadpan, "You sure like questioning the obvious, don't you?"

Before Blake could reply, Yang decided that she had enough of all the interruptions and exploded...quite literally, "I can't take it anymore! Can everyone just chill out for two seconds before something _crazy _happens again?!"

Ren and Nora joined the group, while Naruto raised a hand, counting down two seconds before pointing up at the sky, "You really shouldn't have said that." Looking up, the rest of the group noticed a very large Nevermore flying above them, though that wasn't the center of their attention, but rather the girl holding onto its talon for her dear life.

"How could you leave me?!" She called down over the howling winds.

The group stared at Ruby, who grinned sheepishly and shrugged, "I said 'jump'."

"She's gonna' fall," Blake stated the obvious once again.

"She'll be fiiine," Ruby said, though whether she was convinced by that or not was a different matter.

"She's falling," Ren stated.

_'Kami, what have I gotten myself into?' _Naruto asked himself as he observed the falling form of Weiss. The blonde was about to dash off to catch her, but surprisingly enough, he was beaten to it, and by none other than Jaune at that.

The blonde leapt from the branch he was standing on, catching the heiress with a smug smile, "Just...dropping in?"

Naruto had to give him some credit for that...well, until the two realized that they were still in mid-air, and gravity wasn't about to make an exception for them as they continued falling down to the earth, the blonde screaming, "Oh, noooooo!"

The group flinched slightly as Jaune landed face-first on the ground, and flinched even harder as Weiss landed on top of him with an audible crunch.

The heiress didn't seem to mind in the least though as she examined her nails and mockingly said, "My hero."

"My...back..." Jaune groaned in response.

Behind the two, the Death Stalker was still rampaging in pursuit of its prey, before smacking her to the side with its pincer, as if the girl was little more than an annoying bug.

The red-head was thrown over to the rest of the group, landing at their feet. "Great! The gang's all here! Now we can die together!" Yang exclaimed cheerfully, causing Naruto to sigh in defeat.

"Not if I can help it!" Ruby shouted, followed by a battle cry as she rushed towards the scorpion-like Grimm, prompting Naruto to facepalm; of all the times to prove that she was able to hold her own in a fight, she just had to pick this particular moment.

"Ruby, wait!" Her sister called out, which fell on the deaf ears as Ruby continued towards the over-sized scorpion.

Using her weapon's recoil, the young girl propelled herself forwards, closing the distance between herself and the Grimm in a few seconds flat. She brought up her scythe, ready to strike...only to be thrown back with a swipe of the Death Stalker's pincer.

Naruto, who watched the 'fight' unfold, shook his head.

_'Kurama, be honest with me...was I that bad?' _

**"Sometimes the truth is better left unspoken, kit."**

With a sigh, he turned his attention back to the battle between Ruby and the Death Stalker, if one could even call it that.

"D-D-Don't worry! Totally fine!" She called in a strained voice, her vision swimming slightly from the creature's blow. With no small amount of effort, she managed to stand up, only for her eyes to widen in fear as the Death Stalker was now right behind her, having closed the distance between them during her daze.

Before the creature could take a bite out of her, she unloaded a shot into its face, which only served to irritate the beast as it screeched loudly. Ruby used this chance to retreat, running back to the temple as fast as possible.

That was when Yang rushed forward as well, "Ruby!"

Naruto, who didn't think that it could get any worse at this point, was proven wrong as the Nevermore appeared behind the Deathstalker and Ruby, intent on assisting its fellow Grimm.

With a mighty flap of its wings, it launched a volley of sharpened, black feathers which rained down upon Ruby and Yang, pinning the former to the ground and preventing the latter from advancing.

_'Talk about a recipe for disaster...' _the blonde Uzumaki thought.

Yang, trapped by the feathers, shouted to her sister, "Ruby, get out of there!"

"I'm trying!" She called, frantically trying to pull her cape free. With a horrified expression, she looked up to see the Deathstalker looming over her, jaws clicking and stinger already preparing to strike.

"RUBY!" Yang shouted, barely registering the two blurs that raced past her.

Ruby clenched her eyes shut as the creature's stinger reared back. The young girl brought her arms up on pure instinct, but she knew it was futile. Her mind went blank as she heard the appendage sail through the air, but, strangely enough, she heard something else too. A voice...deep and commanding, whispering and booming at the same time...

"Kongō Fūsa." (1)

Moments passed, and nothing happened. Was she dead? No, she never felt the stinger pierce her. Cautiously, she cracked an eye open, only to reel back in surprise as she saw the tip of the Death Stalker's golden stinger mere inches from her face. Upon re-focusing her sight, she noticed with wide eyes that the creature was immobilized, pinned down to ground.

Orange, almost ethereal-looking chains were wrapped around the entirety of its body. They sprouted from the ground, crisscrossed over the Grimm, and embedded themselves back into the ground.

"Now that that's out of the way..."

She was shaken out of her awe-induced daze as she heard the voice of...Naruto?

The blonde was standing in front of the Grimm, and Ruby noticed the same chains that were binding the creature seemingly flowing out of his palm and into the ground. Her attention was brought back to him as he spoke.

"Ruby, what you did just now...was beyond stupid." The blonde turned to the girl, his voice stern, but not cold, almost like a parent scolding their child, "Do you think acting as recklessly as you just did will make people treat you like an adult?"

She stared wide-eyed at the blonde in front of her, before lowering her head as he continued.

"Charging into battle headfirst against an opponent you _know_ you cannot defeat on your own will not only get you killed, but will also endanger the lives of your teammates. Is that what you imagine an adult would act like?"

Naruto shifted his gaze.

"And you,"

Ruby looked up to see the blonde looking over her shoulder. As she turned her head, she noticed her partner, Weiss, standing a few feet behind her, Myrtenaster raised in her right hand.

"You've been nothing but a spoiled and arrogant child until now. You treat the people around you like they're little more than nuisances, never even trying to understand or get along with them."

The heiress seemed to want to protest, but Naruto silenced her with a single glare that clearly said, 'no room for discussion'.

"The attitude you've been putting up from the moment I met you is just as likely to get you killed on the battlefield as what she just did."

Following the end of his small rant, an almost palpable silence laid itself upon the three, with both Weiss and Ruby looking down at their feet. A good sign, as far as Naruto was concerned; they were honestly giving what he had told them some thought.

**"I'd be laughing at the irony of this whole situation if it weren't so serious."**

_'Someone had to say it, for their sake.'_

Still, the blonde Uzumaki allowed a small smirk to play across his lips. _'Guess you weren't as cold as I thought you were, Snowflake...just a tad too slow though,' _he thought amusedly, looking at the rapier she was clutching in her right hand.

Naruto decided to break the silence, "Now, anything you have to say to each other?"

Weiss looked up before turning to Ruby, sighing as she began, "Listen...I know I can be a bit...difficult, at times, but if we're going to do this, we're going to have to do this together. So, if you quit trying to show off," she seemed to have a slightly difficult time with the next part, but managed to bring it out nonetheless, "I'll be...nicer."

Ruby sighed, "I-I'm not trying to show off...I just want you to know I can do this."

"You're fine."

With that, she began to make her way back to the group, though not before throwing a glance back at Naruto and the immobilized Grimm next to him.

The scythe-wielder breathed a deep sigh of relief before whispering, "Normal knees..." She stood up just in time to see her sister racing towards her, wrapping her up in hug and exclaiming in relief, "So happy you're okay!"

"Glad we've got that sorted out," Naruto said before swinging his arm to the side. The action caused the chains to quickly flow out of his palm until the spiked ends appeared and anchored themselves deeply into the ground.

He turned back to the two sisters, "Come on you two, let's get back to the others," he jerked his thumb at the over-sized scorpion behind him, "My chains won't hold him forever."

The two agreed, and started to make their way back to the temple in relative silence. That silence was shattered into a million pieces as they reached the others, who were staring at him with varying emotion, the most prominent being curiosity as they bombarded him with questions, particularly an orange-haired girl.

"Was that your semblance?! Chains?! That's _sooooo_ cool!" Nora exclaimed as she watched the Death Stalker struggle with its binds.

'Chains' probably weren't that common a semblance, or one at all if they're reactions were anything to go by. "Yes, I suppose you could call it that," the blonde replied as he flexed his hand; he'd never actually used this technique outside of his training, simply because he never needed it, but the moment before was as good as any.

Before the blonde Uzumaki could be bombarded with any more questions, a loud roar resounded above them, the source of which being the Nevermore that was currently in the process of circling back around.

"Guys? That thing's circling back! What are we gonna' do?" Jaune asked, visibly nervous.

Weiss was the one to reply, "Look, there's no sense in dilly-dallying. Our objective is right in front of us." The group turned to look at the relics resting on the pedestals in the temple.

"She's right. Our mission is to grab an artifact and make it back to the Cliffs...There's no point in fighting these things." Ruby gave her partner a nod, which the latter returned. The blonde Uzumaki gave them a small smile of approval which only they caught.

"Run and live, that's an idea I can get behind!" Jaune exclaimed, earning a chuckle from Naruto, "Let's just go with 'tactical retreat'."

With that, the one's who hadn't already done so went to grab a relic...all of them except for Naruto, who had noticed something odd as he examined the relics a bit more closely. First off, there were two of each piece and colour, meaning that they obviously had something to with how the teams would be made up, in that pairs with the same pieces would very likely be put together.

Now that he thought about it, Ozpin did tell him that the teams would consist of four people, so it only made sense that they would determine the teams that way.

He looked over his shoulder to the group teens, all having picked and artifact by now. Jaune and Pyrrha had opted for a golden rook, as did Nora and Ren, while the other two teams had taken the golden knights.

And, lo and behold, resting on the two pedestals in front of him was a gleaming, golden knight and an equally shiny, golden rook.

**"You're going to regret your choice either way, just pick one," **Kurama chuckled in his mind.

Ignoring his tenant, the blonde grabbed one of the relics, rejoining the group after.

"Time we left," Ren said, to which Ruby replied, "Yeah!"

Naruto nodded, dashing off with Ruby while the rest of the group followed close behind. Yang, however, stayed behind, something that Blake noticed as she turned around, "What is it?"

Yang smiled as she watched her sister and Naruto lead the group forward. Blake followed her gaze to the two, and allowed a small smile to grace her features as well.

"Let's go," she said, jerking her thumb at the Death Stalker who had already managed to loosen the grip some of the chains had on it, "From the look of it, those chains won't last much longer."

Both of them nodded, and dashed off after the group, bringing up the rear as they all high-tailed it in the direction of the cliffs, underneath which were ruins similar to those at the temple.

Between the two was a long path, flanked with ruins as well, along with pieces of debris and rubble. Before they could reach the cliff, however, the Nevermore flew past them, casting a shadow down at them as it reached the ruins and perched itself on top of a stone pillar.

The group was forced to split and quickly took cover behind the rubble on either side of the path, watching the Nevermore caw loudly from their hiding places. Naruto had taken the right with Ruby, Weiss, Blake and Yang, while Jaune took the left with Ren, Pyrrha and Nora.

"Well, _that's_ great," Yang said, annoyance evident in her voice.

And as if the fact that the Nevermore hindering their progress wasn't enough, the Deathstalker emerged from the trees behind them, snapping its pincers in agitation as it looked for its lunch that had managed to evade it until now.

"Oh man, run!" Jaune shouted, but before any of them could move, Naruto called, "No! We'll fight!"

Some of them seemed more reluctant than others, but they stayed nonetheless. Naruto took a deep breath, shutting out the Nevermore's cawing and the clicking of the Death Stalker's jaws as he closed his eyes. Memories of his clones once again popped up in his mind, allowing Naruto to scan through them quickly, getting a rough idea of the capabilities of his peers.

When he opened his eyes again, there was something...different about him, something the group couldn't quite place their finger on.

"Jaune!" The blonde shouted across the path, shaking the blonde teen out of his fear-induced daze, "Your team'll take care of that guy," he jerked his head to the direction of the Death Stalker, "We'll take the Nevermore. Think you can manage?"

Apprehension began to show on his face as he looked at the ever-advancing Death Stalker.

"Jaune."

The blonde turned around as he felt a hand on his shoulder, belonging to his partner, Pyrrha, who was giving him a reassuring smile, the determination in her emerald eyes serving to calm his racing heart. "You can do this."

He received a similar look from Ren, while Nora was already taking her combat stance, "Awaiting orders, sir!" She gave him a goofy salute.

With his resolve steeled, the blonde turned back to Naruto, "Got it!" As quickly as they could, the group started to devise a plan of action, while Naruto addressed his own team.

"Ready to take that bird down?"

"You bet!" Yang smirked, her Ember Celica extending over her wrists.

"Of course," Weiss huffed, raising Myrtenaster into the air as the revolver began to spin.

"Let's do this!" Ruby exclaimed, a fire igniting in her eyes as she rammed the tip of Crescent Rose into the ground.

"What's the plan?" Blake asked with a small smirk gracing her lips as she retrieved Gambol Shroud from its sheathe.

Naruto smirked as he regarded the four teens, _'Well, this takes me back.'_

Deciding that this wasn't the time for reminiscing, he pushed those thoughts aside for the time-being and spoke, "We need to cross that bridge and get to the ruins, I'll tell you the plan as we move."

Upon receiving an affirmative from them, he called out to Jaune and the others, "You guys ready?"

"Yeah!" His fellow blonde called, unsheathing his sword, Crocea Mors, as he and the others slipped into their respective combat stances, also unsheathing their respective weapons.

"Go! We'll cover you!" He shouted back, after which the four bolted out of their cover, heading straight towards the Death Stalker with each shouting their own battle-cry. This hardly went unnoticed by the Nevermore as it took flight once again, intent on skewering the teens with its feathers.

"Let's go!" Naruto called, rushing out from behind the piece of rubble with the rest of the team close behind, "Yang, Blake, shoot at it with whatever you've got! Weiss, Ruby, lightning bolt!"

The latter two looked at each other with slight confusion, before realizing what the blonde meant, sharing a nod with a smirk gracing their features.

As Yang and Blake cocked their respective weapons, Weiss swung Myrtenaster in front of her, quickly calling upon her semblance. Soon enough, a series of glyphs appeared, each an electric blue in colour with small arcs of lightning racing across them.

Twirling her scythe, Ruby dropped down to one knee before burying the blade's tip into the ground behind her, so as to lessen the recoil. She produced a red magazine with a black markings from a pouch on her hip, jamming it into the sniper-scythe before cocking the rifle and taking aim at the bird.

Naruto, not exactly having much in regards to weapons, slipped two kunai out of the sleeves of his jacket, which earned him an incredulous look from Blake, "Think that'll be enough?"

"Of course not," Naruto replied with a smirk, which Blake returned as she rolled her eyes. They didn't have any time to continue their banter as the Nevermore flapped its wings, causing the group to tense as it unleashed a veritable hailstorm of sharpened, black feathers. With that, they opened fire, "But _this_ should do!"

The blonde hurled the two kunai into the the black cloud of feathers, swiftly flashing through a set of handseals after.

"Kunai Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" (2)

Much to his team's surprise, the two kunai, which seemed to be all but useless against the onslaught of feathery projectiles, turned into a thousand, effectively tipping the scales in their favour as they violently clashed with the deadly cloud of black plumage.

But his attack wasn't the only one that caused some serious damage; while his kunai knocked some feathers off-course and shredded others, Weiss and Ruby's 'Lightning Bolts' tore through them like wet paper, disintegrating the one's they passed as the arcs of lightning jumped from feather to feather. Their combination attack also made up for what Blake and Yang's weapons lacked in firepower and accuracy respectively.

The sounds of thunder cracks and metal clashing against metal resounded through the chasm between the cliff and the group of teens, with no end in sight. But, just as they emptied the last of their ammo hail of black feathers, the onslaught slowly came to an end, with the Nevermore veering off to the side to avoid the attacks that managed to pass through its rain of feathers.

Ruby, Yang, Weiss and Blake took a moment to catch their breaths, and couldn't help but widen their eyes as they saw just how much damage the clashing attacks had caused; hundreds of feathers lay scattered across the ground before them, some still in one piece while others were charred, shredded or snapped.

Noticing that the Nevermore was no longer blocking their path, Yang called "Now's our chance!" With that, they set out in a dead-sprint across the bridge, intent on crossing it before the Nevermore circled back. Unfortunately for them, the bird-like Grimm wasn't as primitive as some of its brethren, and quickly circled back as it noticed what they were trying to do, intent on smashing the bridge along with the teens.

Were it more intelligent, it would've probably been surprised as two of the five stopped dead in their tracks halfway across the bridge, while the other three, namely Ruby, Yang and Weiss, continued racing across the stone structure. As it was though, the Nevermore simply continued soaring towards them, beak already wide open and intent on devouring the two teens standing on the bridge.

"Are you sure this will work?" Blake asked in a deadpan, somewhat unsure of the blonde's haphazard plan.

"Not really," said blonde replied with a smirk tugging at the corners of his lips, causing Blake to sweat-drop as the whiskered teen shrugged, "Only one way to find out though."

That was when Kurama decided to throw in his own two cents, **"And you were the one reprimanding that girl about being reckless, what, ten minutes ago?"**

Naruto watched the Nevermore heading right towards them, _'Are you,' _he crouched low, every muscle in his body a coiled spring, _'telling me,' _he shot off the bridge and high into the air, with Blake following as the Nevermore crashed into the structure, _'you've got a better plan?'_ The two flipped mid-air and landed on the Nevermore's back, debris of the what was once a bridge showering down upon and around them.

Kurama chuckled as the two teens successfully mounted the Grimm, **"Several, but I suppose this will show just how far you've come...It's been a while since you've had a...**_**decent **_**opponent."**

_'This thing counts as 'decent'?' _Naruto asked his tenant, raising an eyebrow at the black plumage underneath his feet.

**"Hmph, you could kill this insect on your own without breaking a sweat."**

_'Where's the fun in that, though?' _He smirked, before cutting the mental link with his inner demon for the time-being. With a nod that the raven-haired teen next to him returned, both of them ran along the bird's back until they reached its neck. Blake proceeded to swing Gambol Shroud around the Nevermore's throat, allowing Naruto to catch the pistol from where he was standing.

Meanwhile, Weiss, Ruby and Yang had safely reached the ruins, the heiress staring at the Nevermore and its passengers as it took off into the sky with wide eyes, while the other shook her head, one hand resting on her hip.

"So much for all that talk about 'not being reckless'," Weiss huffed, crossing her arms underneath her chest.

Ruby, shaken out of her daze, turned to her partner, "Well...it did work, didn't it?"

Her answer came in form of a glare, to which she smiled sheepishly, before Yang interrupted them,"Come on, let's get into position." With that, the three dashed up to the higher levels of the temple, using their semblances and weapons to quickly climb up the stone pillars.

Back on board of Nevermore airlines, Naruto was just about to call out to his partner before something caught his eye; below them, he saw the battle between Jaune's group and the Death Stalker raging on, and from the look of it, they were winning. Pyrrha had just managed to sever the stinger from its tail, after which Nora got ready to hammer it into its skull. All the while, Jaune was coordinating the team like a natural-born leader...and Ren was passed out on the ground.

The blonde shrugged, _'Guess they aren't too bad after all.' _Bringing his attention back to the task at hand, the blonde called over to Blake, "Ready?" His grip tightened around the gun as the raven-haired teen gave him an affirmative. With that, both of them proceeded to pull the black ribbon to the left, using it as a pair of reins to force the bird Grimm to change course. It was now headed straight towards the cliff-face, but however hard it tried to divert, both teens had an iron grip on the ribbon around its neck, forcing it to slam straight into the cliff while the two ran its length and leapt from its tail.

Blake used her Gambol Shroud to safely touch down on the ground, while Naruto simply hopped along the pillars and ruins below, using his chakra to stick to the surfaces of them. Both of them landed next to Ruby and Weiss, while the Nevermore roared in anger and fought to shake its daze away.

As it did, it immediately removed itself from the cliff and flew straight towards the four teens, breaking right through the pillars and structures in its wake. That however, proved to be great mistake; in its anger, it failed to notice the large, blue glyph on the ground, courtesy of a slightly exhausted Weiss. Almost immediately upon entering said glyph, it was suspended in mid air, trying to flap its wings to escape from the prison, but to no avail.

Wasting no time, Yang appeared above the Grimm, crying out as she descended upon it and rammed her fist into its skull, creating a shock-wave that rippled the air above the point of impact. With the glyph gone, the Nevermore fell to stone ground, dazed by the punch. It wasn't granted any time to recover though as Naruto stood right in front of its face, cracking his knuckles with an almost vicious grin on his face before delivering a chakra-enhanced uppercut that sent the massive bird flying into the air, testament to the strength behind the punch.

Again, without wasting any time, the onslaught continued, this time by Blake, who used the ribbon of her weapon to swing herself towards the Nevermore, who was trying to use the upward momentum from the blonde's punch to escape. That notion was all but lost as Blake extended the blade of Gambol Shroud, turning it into a katana before cleanly slicing through a vital spot in the bend of its wing.

The Nevermore once again shrieked in pain, barely able to hover over the ruins. Taking advantage of this, Ruby and Weiss launched another combined attack at the creature. Instead of lightning bolts though, this time, chunks of ice were sent flying at the Grimm, encasing its body further and further in an icy prison with each shot.

By the time Ruby had completely emptied her magazine, the Nevermore was little more than a block of ice, which proceeded to fall down into the ruins.

Before it could do so, however, Naruto appeared under it, raising one hand with a victorious smirk plastered across his face as the ethereal orange chains shot out from his palm, spiraling their way upward and drilling into the chunk of ice that was the Nevermore.

Time seemed to slow down as cracks spider-webbed across the surface of the ice encasing the bird.

Suddenly though, the ice prison exploded along with the creature inside, the aftermath of which could only be described as morbidly beautiful; snowflakes, some black, some red and some pure white began to fall, raining down upon the ruins below the cliff and being carried away by the gusts of wind above the chasm.

One thought was going through the minds of everyone present as they stared at the spectacle with looks of pure amazement on their faces.

_'Wow.'_

* * *

><p>"Russel Thrush, Cardin Winchester, Dove Bronzewing, Sky Lark." The voice of professor Ozpin echoed through the auditorium, along with the cheering and clapping of the audience. Profiles of the aforementioned students appeared on the two screens, with the four teens lined up in front of the headmaster. "The four of you retrieved the black bishop pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team CRDL, led by...Cardin Winchester!"<p>

The audience gave a wave of ovation to the four teens, who then vacated the podium as the second team walked up to it.

"Jaune Arc, Lie Ren, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie. The four of you retrieved the white rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team JNPR."

Nora giggled happily as she jumped her childhood friend, hugging him as he smiled slightly. Once again, the crowd applauded the newly formed team before Ozpin continued, announcing the leader of team JNPR, "Led by...Jaune Arc!"

Said person's eyes widened in surprise at that, "Huh? L-Led by...?" He trailed off as Ozpin offered him a small smile, "Congratulations, young man."

The blonde looked down to see Naruto giving him a small grin, followed by a quick nod.

Before he could respond to that, Pyrrha offered him a wide grin and a friendly punch to the shoulder, which threw the blonde flat on his rear and earned him a round of laughter from the audience. Team JNPR then also left the stage, allowing the last team that passed the initiation to take their place.

"And finally, Blake Belladonna, Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Yang Xiao Long, Naruto Uzumaki." The professor gave them a slightly mischievous smile before continuing, "The five of you retrieved the white knight pieces, and due to...special circumstances, you will form a team of five." The smile left his face as it returned to its fairly neutral expression, "From this day forward, you will work together as Team RWBYN. (3) Led by...Ruby Rose!"

The crowd erupted in applause one last time while Yang wrapped her sister up in a hug, happily exclaiming, "I'm so proud of you!" Weiss seemed surprised by the fact that Ruby was granted the position of leader, while Blake simply took the revelation with her usual stoic expression.

As for Naruto, he wasn't all that surprised; Ruby did have potential as a leader, though logic still would've dictated him to be assigned that position, seeing as he was far more experienced than his peers. But, then again, the man in front of him wasn't exactly known for his outstanding sense of logic, as far as Naruto was concerned, at least.

The blonde pushed those thoughts aside, offering the young scythe-wielder next to him a short congratulation along with a smile, which she returned.

"It looks like things are shaping up to be an...interesting year," Ozpin muttered amidst the last round of applause, before addressing a certain blonde, "Ah, Mr. Uzumaki," Naruto, who was just walking down the podium, turned around with a raised eyebrow, absently motioning for his team to continue on.

"If you wouldn't mind, a word in my office, please."

_'Why do I have the feeling that I'll have to join him whether I do or don't mind?'_

**"Because that's exactly the case."**

_'...Kami damn it.'_

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

(1): Adamantine Sealing Chains. Yes, he's able to use them in this fic.

(2): Kunai Shadow Clone Technique

(3): RWBYN = Rubin, which is German for, you guessed it, 'ruby'. It's pronounced ru-been.

Well, that was a long-ass chapter. Let me know what you thought about team RWBYN's battle against the Nevermore. Was by far the most difficult battle I've ever written, seeing as it involved a gigantic bird and five people, all of which had to be incorporated into the fight in one way or another, without dividing the action unevenly or just copying the original fight with some alterations. Also, I still have to decide on a weapon for Naruto, so feel free to drop a suggestion in the reviews section.

Looking forward to reading the feedback.

Haine out.


	5. The Cat and the Fox

**AN: **Hey there, been a while, huh? Well, between studying for exams and looking for a job, I haven't exactly had much time to write, but now that both of those are taken care of, I present you the fifth chapter of this fic. It started out as more of a build-up chapter, as you can tell from the title, but I ended up adding a lot of action, which fit in rather nicely, if I do say so myself.

Now, before I spoil anything, please enjoy the next chapter of Naruto: Remnants of the Past.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter five: The Cat and the Fox<strong>

* * *

><p>"Please, take a seat," Ozpin said as he entered his office, with Naruto following close behind.<p>

Night had already fallen over Beacon, and the whole office was cast in an inky darkness, the exception being the headmaster's desk, which was illuminated by the lone light hanging above. Whether that was due to not paying the electricity bills or just to set the mood was beyond Naruto.

Either way, the whole room seemed to be set up for an interrogation, which, truth be told, wasn't exactly beyond the realm of possibilities.

Nonetheless, the blonde Uzumaki did as told, and got seated in the chair in front of Ozpin's desk, while the professor took his own across him, propping his elbows on the surface and folding his hands. Before he could address whatever it was he called him for though, Naruto spoke, just a hint of annoyance leaking into his voice, "Ozpin, if this is about _that _again, you might as well dismiss me."

Ozpin cocked an eyebrow in amusement; while most would consider the way Naruto spoke to the older man disrespectful, the headmaster actually quite welcomed it, mainly due to the fact that the two viewed each other as more of equals, rather than student and teacher.

After all, Ozpin was well aware of the blonde Uzumaki's level of maturity and prowess in combat. Likewise, Naruto knew of Ozpin's decades of experience as a Huntsman, and while he had never seen him in action, he didn't doubt that the headmaster was more than capable of holding his own in combat.

Back in the present, Naruto was waved off by Ozpin, "Relax, this is not about your past. However, before we proceed to why I have called you here," he gave him a small smile, "I feel it's appropriate to congratulate you on your performance during the initiation."

Visibly relaxed by the fact that the conversation wasn't heading in _that _direction, Naruto allowed a foxy grin to slip on his face as he stated, "You seem surprised."

"Not at all. You met and exceeded all my expectations."

"I did say I'd put up a show," he shrugged.

"And that you did; I have to admit I was rather impressed by how you handled the Nevermore with your team." He chuckled, "And the resulting...snowfall, was quite the sight as well."

"It was, wasn't it?," Naruto asked, before deciding to cut the lighthearted conversation short.

"Now, can we get to why you've called me here? I've got a good idea already, but I'd rather hear it from you, just to be sure."

"Of course. Well, consider it a little something to help along with your studies," the professor replied before reaching to his left and searching through a drawer.

Naruto cocked his head to the side; he obviously didn't mean the subjects he would be studying at Beacon, as that would be a rather blatant case of favouritism.

No, what he probably meant was the possible connection between Aura and chakra Naruto had taken to studying; not anything too serious, mind you, but it was a topic he had discussed with Ozpin occasionally.

Before he could continue pondering on those thoughts, the headmaster produced a folder from the drawer and placed it on the desk, actually causing a small tremor to shake it.

The folder itself was fairly simple, yellow in colour and seemed to be a couple sheets short of bursting. Naruto stared at it curiously; it didn't have any visible label or anything else that would hint to its contents. He gave Ozpin an inquisitive look and received a nod from the man, after which he grabbed the folder and began sifting through the various documents.

It didn't take long to find out that it was a collection of information on Aura, though not the kind one would find in a public library. The majority were detailed reports from research conducted by labs in Remnant, apparently to find out more about the origins of the energy.

A few minutes later, the blonde teen snapped the folder shut, and directed his attention back at the smiling man sitting across him, "Not that I'm complaining, but why are you giving me this?"

Ozpin, a smile still resting on his face, replied, "I am just as interested in the possible relation between the energy of your world and that of Remnant as you are." He shrugged, "And it's not as if these documents are highly classified." A slightly mischievous smirk appeared on his face, "Still, while this giving you this isn't blatantly illegal, I would appreciate if you could keep this matter...discreet."

**"Must be at least a **_**little**_** illegal then."**

_'Looks like it.'_

Naruto allowed a small chuckle to escape his lips, "I understand, thank you." With that, he produced a scroll from his jacket, unraveled it and placed it on the desk, revealing the bold writing sprawled across the parchment.

To Ozpin, it looked like little more than unintelligible characters aligned in various patterns across the inside of the scroll. Still, he watched in mild curiosity as Naruto placed the folder on top of the scroll and, with a small puff of smoke, sealed it away.

The blonde teen then rolled it back up and stowed it away in his jacket, addressing the headmaster after, "I'll inform you if I find anything interesting."

Ozpin nodded, and Naruto continued, "If that is all, then I wish you good night."

Naruto turned on his heel and made for the elevator, but barely two steps later, he heard Ozpin's voice from behind him once again, "Actually, there is one more thing I would like to speak about."

_'Should've just used a Shunshin,'_ he thought, resisting the urge to sigh as he already knew what he wanted to speak about.

"What do you feel about Ruby's assignment as the leader of team RWBYN?"

He knew the professor would bring that up sooner or later. It wasn't like he was upset about not being granted the position of leader, but anyone who didn't know that would naturally assume so, given his outstanding performance during the initiation.

"You saw her as fit for the position, and acted accordingly. There isn't anything else to it."

Ozpin smiled slightly, "You needn't be so pragmatic. I'm asking what _you_ feel about it."

Naruto blinked a few times, _'Well...that's new.'_ Noticing that Ozpin was still waiting for an answer, the blonde replied, "I'm not upset about it, if that's what you're asking. Ruby has the potential to be a good leader, but she's young and inexperienced. Though if you think about it that way, the responsibility that comes with that position is exactly what she needs."

"How so?" He asked, his smile widening ever so slightly.

"Ruby relies on her own strength far too much, which has brought her this far, but she's in a team now, and needs to realize that it's not just her and Crescent Rose anymore. If she really does want to become a Huntress, she'll have to work with and lead us."

"And you're not afraid that she'll fail in that role?"

Naruto shrugged, "I've only known you for a few months, but I know that you don't do anything without good reason, so it should be okay...but, if you really were wrong in your choice..."

Suddenly, the whole room was permeated by a malicious, almost dreadful feeling, along with an ever so slight temperature drop and increase in pressure. Ozpin didn't seem to be affected by that, raising his eyebrow as the light above his desk began to flicker. He turned to look out the window, where the wind had picked up speed and was slamming angrily against the window panes.

A dark chuckling brought his attention back to Naruto, the source of it all.

A faint, blue aura was enveloping his body, and even his voice was slightly, almost demonically, distorted as he spoke, "Well, let's just say I don't plan on letting her fail."

Ozpin sweat-dropped at that, suddenly feeling sorry for a certain scythe-wielding teen, _'Who knew he had a sadistic side?'_

"...I see, well, it's...good to see that you're getting along with your new teammates." His sweat-drop increased substantially in size as he noticed Naruto not paying him any attention, apparently still busy with his evil chuckling. With a cough, the professor managed to snap him out of it and bring his attention back to him, "Well, that is all then. I suggest you return to you dorm to get some rest, classes start tomorrow."

Just like that, the wind stopped rattling the windows, the weird atmosphere subsided, and Naruto was back to normal. Well, relatively speaking, of course. The blonde teen gave Ozpin a small bow of respect, turned on his heel and left via the elevator.

* * *

><p><strong>Beacon Cliffs, 11:26pm<strong>

"What to do..." Naruto thought out aloud as he sat on the edge of the Beacon Cliffs, staring out into the vast Emerald Forest which seemed even more breathtaking under the faint light of the moon.

It was already past curfew, but Naruto didn't really feel like returning to his dorm, seeing as he wasn't tired at all. Well, that, and he wasn't exactly keen on the interrogation that was likely awaiting him in his dorm. From what he knew of his newly assigned teammates, they'd probably smother him with questions regarding the abilities which he had pretty much showcased during the initiation.

Given, Blake and Weiss probably wouldn't pester him for too long. Ruby and Yang, however, were a completely different story.

Truth be told, he wasn't exactly averse to telling them about said abilities, seeing as they were on the same team, and thus would end up seeing even more of them at some point. But telling them about his abilities would inadvertently bring them to the question of why he had them in the first place, seeing as they were all but unique in this world.

That, in turn, would link to his past and the fact that he housed a demon within his body; in short, the two things he absolutely didn't want to talk about.

His train of thought was interrupted by Kurama, who, judging from the drawl of his voice, had either just woken up or was on the verge of falling asleep, **"Stop complaining, brat, it's your fault. I told you not to overdo it, didn't I?"**

_'If that was really the case, I don't think you would still be able to call this place a forest.'_

Kurama huffed in annoyance, **"How about you stop stroking your ego and use this chance to train? I've come up with an interesting new...**_**exercise**_** for you."**

Now that caught Naruto's attention, _'Oh? Do tell.'_

Having trained under the demon fox for the past three years, Naruto was confident in the fact that he could handle anything the mighty Bijū threw at him. Well, _almost _anything.

There was that one time Kurama had him try and run up a waterfall for nearly twelve hours, though that exercise was really more of a punishment for annoying the demon fox for a good two days straight.

Said fox snapped him out of his reminiscing, **"I'll explain it on the way, so get going. ****There shouldn't be any interruptions by the humans here, especially at this hour****."**

_'Wouldn't be so sure about that,' _he replied with a shrug, before pushing himself off the cliff and descending into the forest below.

With Naruto gone, the cliff returned to relative silence, which didn't last too long however as it was broken by the rustling of leaves, followed by a figure emerging from behind a couple bushes. As if sensing the fact that the person didn't want to be seen, clouds lazily drifted in front of the moon, which served to hide the figure's features from sight.

Said figure slowly made their way to the edge of the cliff, and looked down just in time to see a blonde dot vanish into the forest.

Inevitably, the clouds continued drifting across the night sky, letting the moon once again bathe the cliff in its light and reveal the identity of the the mystery person.

Blake's calculating, amber eyes scanned the forest below, her raven-black hair blowing in the summer breeze. She watched as a number of trees began to shake slightly, no doubt due to her blonde teammate traversing the forest. With that, the raven-haired teen descended into the forest as well, expertly scaling down the cliff-face.

* * *

><p>Bravery or stupidity.<p>

Those were two of the most prominent reasons as to why anyone would enter the Emerald Forest at night, alone, and without any proper weapon on hand.

The exception to that case was one Naruto Uzumaki. For him, the forest just represented a perfect place to train in, as humans rarely entered it, much less so at night. Thus, he would have no one walking in on him and interrupting his training.

The blonde was currently located in a clearing within the forest, his jacket and cloak discarded and hanging over the branch of one of the many trees surrounding him.

_'__Barring__ the waterfall climbing, this must be the most ridiculous exercise you've ever come up with,' _Naruto said to his inner demon, already getting used to the unnatural position he was in. _'...You've really outdone yourself this time.'_

**"If you're enjoying this, it's clearly not difficult enough."**

Normally, Kurama's training regimens were fairly straightforward, containing things such as several kilometer long runs, calisthenics, chakra control and Jutsu practice, or spars with his clones.

The Bijū's newest exercise was basically a combination of several of the above, mainly containing chakra control and balance, paired with sparring.

_'It's plenty difficult, but considering you've been training me the past three years, I'm sure you could come up with something worse. Maybe a spar against a thousand clones with, I don't know, all my senses blocked out? Definitely wouldn't put that beyond you.'_

**"****You should be careful of what you wish for, kit,"** the Bijū said, a vicious smirk spreading across his face as he made a mental note to actually have him undergo that at one point.

_'Sure, whatever. Anyway, are you sure this'll work?'_

**"****Do you doubt the great Kyūbi no Yōko?****"**

_'__Of course not, sensei,__' _he chuckled.

**"Good. Begin."**

With that, the blonde Uzumaki brought his right hand down to just below his chest, and formed a half-ram seal. His face a mask of pure concentration, Naruto began to feel for his chakra, willing it out of his coils and into his pathways. Warmth began to spread through his body as his chakra flowed through him, starting from the abdomen and following the intricately woven pathways, before he allowed it to flow back into his coils.

Relaxing his body, as far as that was possible in his current position, he began to tap into the vast, ocean like reserves of chakra he had, feeling for the other chakra that resided in his body.

It didn't take long for him to find what he was looking for; dotting the clear ocean were several maelstroms, swirling around in a chaotic manner and dragging small amounts of his own chakra down. Similarly to before, he began to tug on the chakra, but whereas his chakra had calmly flowed into his coils, this one rushed into them like someone had opened a dam.

That wasn't the only difference though; while his own chakra felt warm, this chakra, a burning crimson in colour, felt blazing hot as he allowed a small amount to enter his pathways. Even the consistency was different than that of his chakra; it was almost viscous, as opposed to his own, more fluid one.

With the dense chakra now running through his pathways, the blonde took a deep breath, and expelled it. It appeared as little more than a faint, red haze as it surged into the forest around him, but that was more than enough if what Kurama had explained was anything to go by.

And so, the blonde waited, using the time to get a feel for his surroundings with his remaining senses.

* * *

><p><strong>With Blake<strong>

_'What is he doing here?' _Blake asked herself with a small frown marring her face; following Naruto had proven to be more difficult than she had thought, seeing as she had lost him a couple minutes ago.

Still, she knew the general direction in which her blonde teammate had been heading, and so continued traversing the dense forest. Eventually, she happened upon a small clearing beyond the trees and bushes in front of her. Treading carefully, she crept up behind a few bushes and peered into the clearing.

What she saw within had her amber eyes widening in amazement. After all, it wasn't every day one saw a person balanced over what looked like a small needle...with one finger. And as if that in and of itself wasn't insane enough, he was wearing a blindfold over his eyes. His jacket and cloak hung over the branch of a tree, likely because they would hinder his...well, whatever it was he was doing.

The only viable explanation for his unusual position was probably the fact that it was an exercise for the blonde teen. A ridiculous one, but considering the speed, reflexes and strength he displayed during the initiation prior, it wasn't exactly beyond the realm of possibilities that he was indeed simply training.

Blake, for her part, remained hidden, her gaze still locked on her teammate; somehow she knew that interrupting him right now wouldn't sit too well with him.

As such, she continued watching him, before a somewhat irritating sound made its way to her sensitive ears. It was a low rumble, which grew continuously louder with each second, until it was just loud enough for Blake to discern its direction, which was right behind her.

She whirled around to see a small pack of three Beowolves racing towards her. Oddly enough, as mindless as they were, Blake never recalled them being this...uncoordinated. They were tripping over their own feet repeatedly as they raced towards her, and slammed into more than a few trees on their way.

The raven-haired teen shook her head free of those thoughts and unsheathed Gambol Shroud, intent on taking them out swiftly and silently. After all, she didn't want to be found out just yet.

Brandishing both parts of her weapon, Blake surged forward, ready to engage the pack of Grimm. Both weapons ready, she decided to take out two of them at the same time, and push back the last one with a well-placed kick to the chest.

The plan, were it any other situation, would've been relatively flawless. In this case, however, Blake was left dumbstruck as, instead of attacking her, the Beowolves simply dodged her attacks and rushed into the clearing behind her.

She quickly got up and directed her gaze to the clearing the three had just entered, her eyes widening at the thought of her blonde teammate.

Now, she was well aware that Naruto could handle himself just fine, but considering the fact that the teen was currently blindfolded and balanced over a needle, Blake did feel a small amount of worry creep up her back.

With that thought in mind, she darted into the clearing, only to be stopped dead in her tracks, her hair blowing and eyes widening even more as the body of a Beowolf flew straight past her. It proceeded to slam into a tree behind the raven-haired teen, leaving a cracked indentation on the trunk as its body slid down to the ground.

_'One down...six to go,'_ Naruto thought, feeling the small amounts of vibration through the needle, along with the sound of their feet slamming into the ground as they advanced towards him.

The two which had entered the clearing before the others were the first one's to engage him in battle, apparently none-too-happy about their companion's demise, if their furious roars were anything to go by.

For Naruto, that just made it all the easier discerning their positions.

The one nearest to the blonde, once close enough, took a leap at him, only to have the wind knocked out of its lungs as it found two feet firmly planted into its torso. Using the creature's momentum against it, Naruto twisted his body back, stretched his bent legs and launched the creature into the air.

With that one out of the way for the moment, the blonde teen focused on the position of the second Grimm, getting a good approximate on it a second later.

_'...Eight o'clock.__'_

The second Beowolf, mindless as it was, didn't pay any mind to the ever growing shadow just in front of its prey, instead opting to continue its assault.

Imagine its surprise when the Grimm Naruto had launched into the air inevitably obeyed the laws of gravity and fell back down to the earth, receiving a spinning kick from the blonde Uzumaki that sent it flying, this time horizontally, right into its companion.

Without time to even voice their pain, the two sailed through the air and slammed into a tree, smashing right through it and continuing on beyond the clearing for a good four or five more trees.

Concentration written over his face, Naruto returned his attention back to the remaining Grimm, one of which was now directly upon him. In a great display of agility, the blonde teen twisted his body in time to dodge the Beowolves swipes, while reaching back to the pouch on his hip.

He retrieved two kunai from said pouch, quickly throwing one up into the air while catching the other in a reverse grip.

The Beowolf, intrigued by the shiny piece of metal sailing up into the air, left its guard down long enough for Naruto to trap its head in a headlock with his legs. Staying in motion, the blonde channeled wind-natured chakra into the kunai he had in his right hand, proceeding to ram it into the Beowolf's right arm.

He didn't bother pulling the chakra enhanced kunai out of the spiny limb, instead using his now free hand to get an iron grip on the creature's still functional arm.

The two remained locked together in that position, until, moments later, Naruto suddenly released the holds on its body.

The Beowolf, surprised by the sudden action, didn't notice the kunai Naruto had sent flying into the air prior begin to sail back down.

Time seemed to slow down as the sharp piece of metal descended just next to the Beowolf's head, and Naruto swung his right leg around just in time to slam his heel into the ring beneath the handle of the kunai.

The Beowolf didn't even get a chance to roar in pain as the cold metal embedded itself deeply into its head, instantly killing the creature. The body then fell to the ground, unmoving as the remaining Grimm took the place of their deceased brethren.

What the two parties didn't know, was that the whole battle was being followed by a certain raven-haired teen. Blake's normally stoic face, not revealing much of her emotional state, was now sporting a look of disbelief and astonishment. She knew that her blonde teammate was strong, more so than most of the students at Beacon, clearly, but the way he dispatched one Grimm after another, in the position he was in and without the ability to see...it was almost mesmerizing.

Time flowed by as she continued watching the battle, and before she knew it, another two Beowolves were taken care of, leaving only more, currently in the process of charging at Naruto; a bad idea, as far as she was concerned.

Well, not like the Beowolf was aware of her thoughts.

As such, it simply continued charging towards its prey, preparing to tear the human to shreds with its sharps claws and fangs. As he was about to do just that though, the blonde teen disappeared in a blur of motion, causing the Beowolf to sail right past the spot he had been occupying not even a second prior.

As quickly as he had disappeared, Naruto reappeared over the still airborne Grimm, Rasengan already forming in his hand.

The roar of pain the creature let out was almost deafening as the Jutsu drilled into its flesh, tearing through it like wet paper. It was silenced a moment later as the force of the jutsu slammed him into the ground, creating a small crater and throwing up a cloud of dust.

As the cloud settled, Naruto was revealed standing next to the unmoving body, already in the process of removing the blindfold wrapped around his eyes. A small smirk of satisfaction spread across his face as he allowed his gaze to wander around the clearing, taking in the carnage he had caused.

The smirk he was sporting grew just a fraction larger as he heard an almost inaudible shuffle, coming from the treeline.

Instead of walking over to the direction the sound originated from, the blonde opted to retrieve his discarded jacket first, before calling out with amusement lacing his voice, "Did you enjoy the show, then?"

For a moment, it seemed like he was speaking to himself, but soon enough, a female voice answered his question.

"It was impressive," Blake stated, sauntering into the clearing with a small frown marring her features at being found out.

Naruto, for his part, didn't seem to be satisfied with her answer; in his humble opinion, his performance would warrant way more than a simple 'impressive'. Well, not like it mattered too much.

His previously amused demeanor took a sudden one-eighty, his tone turning completely serious as he addressed his teammate, "I'm sure watching me train isn't what you came here for. Mind telling me why you've been following me ever since I left Ozpin's office?"

If Blake was surprised by that, it didn't show; after all, given what little she knew about her blonde teammate's abilities, she might as well have guessed as much.

"I needed to talk to you."

Naruto, who, by now, knew what all this was about, relaxed a bit, "I take it this is about how you were 'shadowing' me back in Vale for the past month?"

Blake, who, once again, didn't seem surprised by that, proceeded to answer his question, "Do you know about the rumors concerning you that surfaced around month ago?"

"Rumors?" Naruto cocked his head to the side, an unnoticeably small grin stretching across his face; he wasn't normally one to toy with people, but considering how she had been more or less stalking him, instead of just coming clear, he felt a little...punishment, wouldn't hurt.

His musings were cut short as she answered his previous question, "A black-clad human suddenly appearing in Vale and aiding Faunus without any reason. You didn't think any rumors would spread?"

Naruto shrugged in response, "Considering I was only helping out a little, no, I didn't think there would be too many."

Finally, Blake allowed some emotion to break through her mask, her gaze turning pensive, almost sad as she replied, "You might not think much of it, but to those people, it was a lot." As quickly as those emotions came, they were gone again, replaced by a deadpan look, "Besides, you painted five shops in different shades of pink and orange; I wouldn't consider that 'a little'."

Just as Naruto was about to reply, Kurama decided to butt into the conversation, whistling as he said, **"That girl that used to stalk you back in Konoha could a learn a thing or two from her****.****"**

A drop of sweat appeared on the side of his forehead, which he quickly shook away as he turned his attention back to the conversation.

"That's all fine and good, but you still haven't told me just why you've been following me."

"Because I want to know why," she replied without missing a beat.

"Why I help the Faunus, huh?"

Blake nodded; it wasn't unheard of for humans to stand up for the Faunus. But in Naruto's case, it was a lot more than simply that, especially seeing as he had no apparent reason to do so.

Naruto, oblivious to his teammate's thoughts, stared up at the shattered moon, his face expressionless for the most part, "My reasons are my own, but, if you really want to know, it's because I can't stand for the treatment they receive...though I suppose neither can you, being a Faunus yourself."

Finally, the emotionless mask the raven-haired teen was wearing began to shatter, revealing the surprised and shocked expression written across her face. She took a step back, trying to say something, anything, but her mouth suddenly felt too dry to do so.

She considered lying about it, but the idea was quickly shot down; something told her that lying to this person would be an unwise thing to do, never mind the question of whether he would believe her or not.

Naruto regarded the raven-haired teen with compassion present in his deep-blue eyes; it was painful seeing someone have such a reaction at having their true self revealed. Still, the blonde Uzumaki understood it well enough, like her, knowing the feeling of being labeled a freak and an abomination by society.

"Since...when do you know?" Blake managed to ask, having recomposed herself enough to do so.

"I had my suspicions back when you followed me in the city, though I found out for sure the day before the initiation."

A slight widening of her eyes was all he got before she averted her gaze, "...I see."

Naruto ran a hand through his blonde locks before closing the distance between himself and his raven-haired teammate, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Relax, I'm not going to tell anybody. While hiding your true self is something nobody should be forced to do, I understand that it's necessary. I have secrets of my own that I'd rather not reveal, so I'm hardly one to tell you that you should broadcast this through all of Beacon. As for our team..."

Naruto turned his head to look in the direction of the academy, "Whether you wish to tell them about this or not is up to you."

From what the blonde Uzumaki knew about his teammates, he could tell with a good amount of certainty that Ruby and Yang wouldn't care about Blake's being a Faunus. The heiress to the Schnee Company, Weiss, however, was a different matter; her family had been in conflict with the Faunus organisation, the White Fang, for many years. As such, he doubted that she would have the most positive attitude towards them, member of the White Fang or not.

Deciding the push those thoughts aside for the time being, Naruto waited for an answer from Blake, which she provided a few moments later.

"I...can't. Not yet, " she answered, her gaze still directed at her feet.

Naruto, of course, understood her decision. After all, he himself was hiding the fact that he was a Jinchūriki; a human sacrificed to be the container of a demon able to level mountain ranges with a flick of its tail.

"I understand," he began, prompting the raven-haired teen to look up at him, "I'll keep this to myself then."

Naruto was pleasantly surprised as Blake gave him an honest smile; not a stoic smirk or anything like that, just a smile which, while small, conveyed her gratitude to him.

"Thank you."

Naruto, having returned back to his usual self, returned the smile with a foxy grin, "As I said, I have things of my own that I'd rather not talk about, so I understand how you feel."

With that out of the way, Naruto noticed how late it actually was; around half past twelve in the morning going by his internal clock. "Come on, let's get back to dorm," he said, receiving a nod from Blake.

Before either of them could even take a step out of the clearing though, a familiar roar rumbled through the air, followed by the tell-tale sound of trees being smashed to bits. Naruto and Blake, both already aware of just what was causing all that ruckus, turned around.

Half a dozen Ursa Major, accompanied by regular Ursai and Beowolves, stormed into the clearing, their burning eyes fixed on the two teens standing across them.

For a few moments, both parties just stared at each other, until Naruto called, "A little too late to late to the party, don't you think, boys?"

Much to their surprise, (not really), the creatures answered with a round of low growls, which turned into full-blown roars and howls as the horde of Grimm began to charge at them, causing a miniature earthquake to shake the ground in the clearing.

"Doesn't seem like they care about that," Blake remarked, a faint smirk resting on her face as she returned to her usual, stoic self, complete with the dry sense of humour. "Think you can keep up?" She asked, referring to his 'training' earlier.

"Is that a challenge I hear?" Naruto inquired, a devilish smirk stretching across his face as he spun a kunai around his finger before catching it in a reverse grip.

"Have anything particular in mind?" Blake asked coolly while retrieving Gambol Shroud from behind her back.

"The one with the most kills wins?"

A small widening of her smirk was all Naruto got in response before the teen shot off, brandishing Gambol Shroud and its sheathe in either hand as she engaged the veritable tsunami of Grimm.

The blonde Uzumaki blinked a couple times before laughing out, "So that's how you want to play it, huh?"

Blood dripped down and stained the grass crimson as Blake slashed a Beowolf across the chest, already aware of the Ursa approaching from her right. Before she could even prepare for an attack though, a black and blonde blur shot past her, surging forward into the ranks of the Grimm before settling at the treeline.

The blur, revealed to be none other than Naruto, nonchalantly leaned against a tree, arms crossed over his chest as several Grimm, including the Ursa Blake had been targeting, fell to the ground with dull, meaty thuds.

The raven-haired teen turned to level a glare at her blonde teammate, before quickly stepping to the side just in time for an Ursa Major's paw to crash down into the space she had been occupying.

Naruto, thoroughly amused by his usually calm teammate's irritation, chuckled before jumping back into the fray.

* * *

><p><strong>Fifteen minutes later<strong>

In a fluid motion, Gambol Shroud's blade collapsed, switching into its secondary form and allowing Blake to fire a few rounds into the crowd of Grimm surrounding her, keeping them at a distance.

Using the brief pause to gather her bearings, she noticed just how many of the creatures had actually gathered in the clearing; for all anyone knew, the last fifteen minutes might as well have been nonexistent, seeing as the fight had only served to attract more of the beasts.

Really not that surprising, given the amount of noise they were generating.

The approaching claws of a Beowolf snapped her out of her thoughts, prompting her to dodge the strike before cutting the appendage off and quickly silencing the creature by stabbing her katana through its throat.

With that taken care of, she began looking around for Naruto, which was easier said than done considering the amount of Grimm around her. Eventually though she managed to find him surrounded by a good dozen Ursai and Beowolves. Blake watched as he threw an Ursa Major into the air with a brutal kick, and continued to form a weird sign with his hands.

"Fūton: Kazekiri no Jutsu!" (1)

The raven-haired teen watched with wide eyes as the Ursai and Beowolves in front of her blonde teammate were cut into pieces by seemingly invisible blades, allowing Naruto to direct his attention back to the Ursa Major which was falling back down into the clearing.

The blonde Uzumaki produced one of those blue, spiraling orbs in each hand and raised his arms, allowing the Ursa Major to fall right on top of said orbs.

Blake was left profusely sweat-dropping as she witnessed the blonde's unnecessarily flashy kill; the two orbs, spiraling in opposite directions, slowly began to tear the creature apart, sending the two halves along with a good amount of blood flying into the crowd.

Leave it to Naruto to come up with the most creative way to kill a Grimm.

The blonde teen, for his part, seemed to be having the time of his life as he tore into the creatures around him.

Blake silently shook her head at her teammate's...enthusiasm, and slowly began to fight her way through to him. The past fifteen minutes of non-stop battling had left her winded though, and due to that she failed to notice the Ursa getting ready to slam its paw into her from behind.

Still, her alert senses picked it up just in time for her to block the brunt of the attack with the cleaver-like sheath of Gambol Shroud. The force of the strike sent her skidding back a few feet though, until she met resistance in form of Naruto's back.

"How're you holding up?" The blonde teen asked, seemingly not concerned about the ring of Grimm that began to close around them, if his clearly amused tone was any indication.

"I'm beginning to think this was a bad idea," she called, very much aware of the fact that they were pinned to the middle of the clearing; not the ideal place to be given their current situation.

"How so?" Naruto called back over the deafening roars and growls, blocking an Ursa's swipe with his forearm before countering with a chakra enhanced fist to its gut. Like a bowling ball, the Grimm was sent barreling back, knocking several others to the ground.

"If you haven't noticed already, we're completely surrounded," she deadpanned, stabbing Gambol Shroud through a Beowolf's head.

"And how exactly is that bad?"

"I don't have the amount of stamina you do," she called back.

"Giving up then?" he grinned, ducking down and allowing the raven-haired teen to roll over his back, using the momentum to deliver a brutal, yet graceful axe-kick to a Beowolf, "You wish."

"That's the spirit," he laughed, prompting Blake to roll her eyes.

While it didn't exactly show, Naruto was impressed with his teammate; Blake was keeping up with him nicely, considering she didn't have a drop of chakra at her disposal, which was, for the most part, the source of Naruto's insane amounts of stamina.

Her fighting style wasn't quite unlike his own either, relying on speed and agility to swiftly take opponents down without the use of excess energy. However, chakra once again came into play here, allowing Naruto to put a lot more force into his blows, whereas Blake had to be mindful of how much energy she used.

_'Can't remember the last time I've had this much fun,' _the blonde mused before continuing the fight, which had turned into a one-sided massacre at that point.

The battle raged on for another fifteen minutes, and the amount of Grimm had dwindled down to less than a dozen, with the last Beowolf and Ursa falling a few minutes later. In the middle of all the corpses, were Blake and Naruto, leaning against each other's backs.

Blake was breathing heavily by now, but otherwise didn't look any worse for wear, while Naruto only had a sheen of perspiration covering his skin.

"Shall we compare scores then?" Naruto asked, much to the annoyance of his teammate; it was clear as day that she had lost, but apparently her blonde teammate really wanted to rub it in, didn't he?

"...Twenty-eight," she stated after a few moments of silence.

She didn't even need to look at his face to know that he was sporting a wide, foxy grin as he stated his score, "Sixty-five."

Yup, he really did want to rub it in.

"I would've had more if you didn't keep taking my kills," she accused, having caught her breath by now.

"May I remind you that _you_ were the one who started to play dirty right off the bat? Don't go complaining on me now."

"Jerk."

"Sore loser."

The two teens turned to look at each other over their shoulders, suddenly beginning to laugh at the somewhat childish argument. The sound filled the air in the clearing before slowly subsiding into silence a minute later.

"Come on, let's head back to the academy...unless you're up for another round?"

To answer his question, Blake started walking towards the academy, prompting a smiling Naruto to quickly join her.

With that, the two teens began to make their way back to the academy, leaving the corpses of the many Grimm they had killed to slowly disintegrate in the clearing.

* * *

><p><strong>Beacon <strong>**campus****, 1:12am**

The trek back to the academy was fairly eventless, mostly due to a somewhat tense silence having descended upon the two teens. Naruto knew why that was the case, running a hand through his golden locks as he decided on whether or not what he was about to say next was a good idea.

In the end, he decided for it; after all, he had given this enough thought during the past weeks, and keeping it to himself would only do more harm than good in the long run.

"Just go ahead and ask."

Snapped out of her thoughts, Blake directed an inquisitive gaze at her blonde teammate, which he answered with a shrug, "I know you have some questions regarding me, and seeing as I know a little about you now, the other way around would only be fair. Keep in mind however that I can't guarantee to answer all your questions."

Blake nodded, and took a moment to sort out the questions on her mind. In the end, she decided for the one that was on the forefront of her mind, "I want to know about your abilities. During the initiation, you said chains were your semblance, but since then you've shown other abilities that have no relation to 'chains' whatsoever."

Naruto sighed in response; he could answer that, but it would have to be a _very_ brief explanation, seeing as they were about to arrive at their dorm. _'Well, no backing out now.'_

"Do you remember how I told that I'm not from here?"

Blake nodded, recalling their first conversation in which he had told her that. Still, she didn't see how that connected; 'not from here' probably meant that he was from Vacuo, Mistral or Atlas, and as far as she knew, the people there didn't have the kind of powers he did.

"Well, with that, I meant that I'm not from Remnant."

* * *

><p><strong>Later...<strong>

Having woken up that morning, Blake definitely didn't expect the multitude of surprises the new day held in store for her.

One of her teammates had found out that she was a Faunus, and had essentially been stalking him for the better part of a month. The next big surprise had taken place about ten minutes ago, and left Blake rather speechless.

Naruto had only given her a brief description regarding his strange abilities, but even then it was a lot to take in. Not only was he from somewhere outside of Remnant, but he didn't have an Aura either, instead possessing chakra, an energy much stronger and far more versatile than Aura if his short explanation was anything to go by.

"So, nothing to say about all this?" Naruto asked amusedly, once again snapping Blake out of her thoughts.

"It's...a lot to take in," she said, though the fact that she had already witnessed a lot of his abilities did make it a little easier.

Soon enough, the two teens arrived at the door to their dorm, and with a quick exchange of glances, silently agreed to drop the conversation for now.

Using his scroll, Naruto disengaged the lock next to the door, and allowed both of them to enter the room and get a look at its interior, which was far from impressive. Still, it was much better than anything Naruto was used to.

It was a quaint room which, while rather spacious, wasn't exactly large enough to comfortably accommodate five people. The interior consisted of a circular carpet in the middle of the room, and five beds that were lined up next to the wall, in the middle of which was a large window.

Having finished examining their living quarters for the next four years, the two teens began to decide on beds, which was also when they noticed that only two of said five beds were occupied.

Almost immediately after making that observation, the door behind them was shut with a small click, and turning around, they found none other than Yang leaning against it. The second blonde member of their team had a wide grin splitting her face as she regarded the two, "And just where have you two been the whole night?"

Naruto, deciding to go for a half-truth, answered, "We were training."

Blake agreed with a nod, "Yeah."

"Training, eh?" Yang asked, grin still on her face as she sauntered towards them.

Finally, realization began to dawn on Blake; she and Naruto had been gone for the last couple hours, and returned at nearly two o'clock in the morning.

With that thought in mind, her eyes widened as she immediately blurted out, "Yang, th-this isn't what it looks like!"

Like a predator eyeing its prey, Yang directed her gaze towards her raven-haired teammate, "And what _does_ it look like?"

Naruto, being naturally dense when it came to this subject, couldn't have been more confused; he did say they were training, which was the truth...well, a half-truth. Still, he doubted she could actually read through it, so what was she getting at?

**"Ignorance is bliss."**

_'Huh? Did you say something?'_

**"No."**

Meanwhile, Yang had wrapped an arm around her raven-haired teammate's shoulder, who continued denying her rather obscene accusations.

"Come on, how could you _not_ do anything with _him_?"

Blake, sporting a small blush by now, pushed Yang away, "I'm telling you, we didn't do anything like that."

"So...you did something else?"

"What? No!"

Seeing no other option, Blake turned to Naruto for help, "Naruto, tell her we didn't do anything!"

Silence descended upon the room as both of them waited for the blonde Uzumaki's decisive answer.

...

Deciding to find out what was taking so long, both she and Yang turned around to see Naruto peacefully asleep in one of the beds, having left the two to what he had deemed some kind of 'women's conversation.'

"Wow, you completely tired him out," Yang guffawed loudly.

Blake, having resigned herself to the fact that there was no way out of this, simply face-palmed, trying her damnedest to shut out her partner's voice.

Yang, for her part, simply continued laughing at her partner's cost, so hard in fact that she collapsed onto the floor.

Unfortunately for them, the level of noise they were generating was anything but little, so it came as little surprise when a certain heiress woke up.

"What is _wrong_ with you people?!" Weiss screamed, glaring at the two people stupid enough to cause such a ruckus at two in the morning. Her scream, in turn, woke the remaining member of team RWBYN up.

"Is it already time for class...?" The young scythe-wielder asked groggily, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

Ruby's question would forever stay unanswered as a knock brought their attention to the door. With a glance to her team, Yang slowly walked over to the door and opened it, revealing Jaune along with the rest of team JNPR standing outside, whom they had probably just woken up as well, going by the exhaustion in their faces.

"We heard shouting, is everything okay?" The blonde team-leader asked with a yawn, dressed in his unflattering full-body pajamas, of course complete with bunny slippers.

Yang, foregoing anything logical at this point, merely waved him off, "Everything's fine, we were just talking about how Blake and Na-" Before she could finish the sentence, she was tackled to the ground by Blake, who none-too-gently pressed her hand over her mouth.

Everyone present stared at the two struggling teens with looks of surprise and curiosity on their faces. That was until their attention was once again diverted.

Apparently, the racket they had been causing didn't just wake team JNPR up, evident by the shouting coming from outside the room.

"SHUT THE HELL UP!" A male voice called.

"You shut the hell up!" Another answered.

"Both of you shut your damn mouths before I make you!" Came the third one.

"Big talk, tough guy, how about you come back it up?"

"Like your mother did last night?"

...

"YOU'LL EAT THOSE WORDS THROUGH A STRAW ONCE I'M FINISHED WITH YOU!"

The drops of sweat hanging down the heads of both team RWBYN and JNPR grew even larger as more and more of the student body was woken up, resulting in a gigantic fiasco that was sure to reach even the teachers on the other side of the campus. At that thought, the two teams silently agreed to return to their respective rooms and never talk about this incident again.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong>

(1): Wind Release: Wind Cutter Technique

That's it for this chapter. As always, looking forward to reading the reviews.

Haine out.


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